


Overrun

by animatedrose



Series: 2021 writings [1]
Category: Among Us (Video Game)
Genre: Alien Impostor(s) (Among Us), Amputation, Anxiety, Arguing, Arguments, Betrayal, Biting, Blackouts, Blood, Blood Loss, Body Horror, Breaking and Entering, Butchering, Cannibalism, Caretaking, Confessions, Confusion, Corpses, Cruelty, Cuddling & Snuggling, Dead crewmates, Death Sentence, Deceit, Decontamination, Delirium, Distrust, Dying people, Eating Human Flesh, Eggplant eating bottles, Enemies to Friends, Everyone Needs A Hug, Failed Murder, Fear, Feral Behavior, Friends to Enemies, Gen, Ghosts, Gore, Guns, Hurt/Comfort, I'm not a doctor, Iceberg has a killer acting career, Illness, Imprisonment, Injury, Insanity, Isolation, Love, MIRA HQ, Medical Care, Mercy - Freeform, Mind Games, Mint is becoming a good bean kinda, Monsters in the dark, Moral Dilemmas, Murder, Paranoia, Plot Twist, Polus be in trouble, Power Outage, Protectiveness, Regret, Revenge, Sabotage, Self-Denial, Self-Doubt, Separation Anxiety, Shapeshifting, Stabbing, Stockholm Syndrome, Suicidal Thoughts, Suspicions, Teamwork, Torture, Twin bonds, Vent travel, airlock ejection, being eaten alive, bisection, can you tell when the crewmates became imposters?, chatting between crewmate and imposter, communication errors, crewmate performing sabotage, eaten animals, enemy of my enemy is a friend, enjoyment of suffering, exposing weaknesses, ghost crewmates, i bet none of you saw this coming, identity outing, imposter secrets, imposter sickness, imposters eating imposters, imposters find emotions weird, imposters overrun the skeld, infighting among imposters, laboratory security procedures, last crewmate survivor, lost limbs, lots of pretending, mini imposters hate the imposters, mini imposters like the crewmate, minis are strong, minis becoming adults, missing kids, mold, old meat, password systems, polus, power struggles, questioning memory, reality hates everyone, rifles, rot, secret communications, severed limbs, ship sabotage, smell of death, switching between the past and present, the imposters have different forms before becoming crewmates, the skeld, toothy slimes, tourniquets, watching your own death, you got ghosts, you wanted ghosts
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-03
Updated: 2021-03-08
Packaged: 2021-03-13 01:40:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 32
Words: 29,784
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28520283
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/animatedrose/pseuds/animatedrose
Summary: The Skeld has been overrun by imposters, leaving crewmate Catnip as the sole survivor. Forced to survive by posing as the enemy, Catnip must convince the Polus colony to give up on rescuing her in favor of eradicating the imposters before they can figure out how to navigate the ship. The imposters are getting crowded, turning on each other in search of food.Catnip must remember that she is human. She's just playing along. Her friends are dead, even though she looks them in the face everyday...
Series: 2021 writings [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2089221
Comments: 220
Kudos: 197





	1. Present 1

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by The Pixel Kingdom’s video “AMONG US, but with 99 IMPOSTERS” on Youtube.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Among the monsters, one survives...

Catnip remembered how The Skeld used to be. Full of familiar faces, crewmates and friends. They were all born on the ship, the remnants of mankind taken to outer space. She couldn’t recall why they were in space.

It couldn’t have been to die like this.

She carried on, resisting the urge to pull out her gun. She needed to blend in. Her purple suit was sticky with blood, boots squeaking as she walked. The halls had long turned red, gore piled in corners and gnawed bones becoming treacherous obstacles.

She passed by Oxygen, ignoring the imposters there. They were fighting over something. She didn’t want to identify it. She carried on to Communications, praying that some higher being was on her side.

“Let it be empty, please,” she begged softly.

She peered around the corner into the room. It was empty by all appearances, but she had seen far too many imposters that hung out exclusively in the vents. An empty room could easily have several dozen eyes and ears in it.

Catnip wrung her hands, heading for the radio. By some luck, it still worked. It crackled sometimes, the noise driving the imposters off. She feared the day where pain caused them to react with violence rather than fear. If they ever broke the radio, her odds of eradicating this infestation were gone forever.

She couldn’t let them live. She couldn’t let them reach the surface of any colonized planet. They had to die here.

Even if it meant dying with her.

The radio crackled. Catnip flinched as she heard hissing. The vents thumped as imposters lounging in it scurried away. Once she was sure that they were gone, she poked at the dials until the static became clear.

“Skeld, this is Polus. Skeld, this is Polus. Do you copy?”

“Catnip here, from the Skeld.”

“You’re still alive!”

“For now. They’re getting smarter. They know there’s a faker among them,” Catnip said, glancing over her shoulder nervously. “They’ve started killing each other. They’re getting hungrier.”

“Maybe they’ll massacre each other enough for us to board.”

“Don’t bother. You’re better off blowing the ship up. Less risk. There are little ones,” Catnip said, black cat ears twitching on her helmet. Were those footsteps down the hall? “If even one gets off The Skeld, it’ll just repeat.”

“We have to get you out of there.”

“No, you don’t. You have to kill these things. You have plenty of colonists on Polus. You don’t need me,” Catnip insisted.

It was the same argument. Polus’ population had managed to kill off their imposters, but they were soft and merciful. They wanted so badly to save her. They didn’t understand. They hadn’t seen the levels of carnage that these things could create if there were enough of them.

Catnip wanted to escape. She wanted to go to Polus, to carry on The Skeld’s legacy.

She didn’t want to do it like this.

“We still can’t get the reactors to stabilize. Without those, we can’t charge the guns.”

“They haven’t figured out the ship controls. They can’t steer,” Catnip said, checking behind her again. Was that a shadow ducking around the corner? “I’ll keep them floating blind as long as I can. I have to go.”

“Catnip, we’re going to get you out. I swear!”

Catnip twisted the radio dial, reducing the conversation to static just as a large form filled the doorway. She shrank back with a small hiss. The imposters rarely spoke, usually growling and hissing like wild beasts. There were exceptions, of course.

“What are you doing?”

Romaine towered over her in his green suit, ram horns curling from his helmet. His visor glowed a deadly red. He had posed as her best friend for several weeks and had been among the first imposters to get aboard The Skeld. Where he came from, Catnip had no idea.

She hated Romaine. Hated how he still posed as her friend, wearing his suit, his horns, his gravelly voice. Hated how she still looked twice when she saw him.

Catnip scrambled for an explanation. “I was just—”

Romaine suddenly grunted, nearly toppling over. Two other imposters stumbled into the room, hissing at each other. They tussled on the ground, ignorant to their audience. Romaine growled, tensing up.

Catnip readied to run. She knew that stance. If it was one thing that alerted her to Romaine’s real nature, it was that he hated physical contact.

Romaine roared, launching himself at them. The pair of imposters froze, flipping around. It was too late by then. Catnip ran past, trying not to look. To ignore the sudden panicked screams from the two younger imposters.

It always made her heart clench. She knew she shouldn’t care, but she did. Even imposters, they were still kids. They couldn’t know how Romaine was.

She stopped at the Cafeteria. A few imposters were around, most of them dozing on the filthy floor. A certain ice blue imposter inclined their helmet toward her. Catnip approached obediently.

Iceberg was another of the first ones, taking the place of their medic. Catnip had been horrified when she found his body but by then, it had been too late to stop them. She had trusted Iceberg and, rather ironically, that trust carried on even now. She wasn’t sure why.

“Romaine?” he questioned. She could see his visor crackle, teeth in a glassy disguise.

Catnip nodded. “He’s getting more frustrated.” She played along.

“It’s getting crowded,” Iceberg grumbled, glancing at the bay windows. “We need to get to that planet. Someone here must know how to operate this thing.”

Catnip held her tongue. Iceberg loved to talk. He was chatty for an imposter. That had been how he’d blended in so well. Romaine had become impulsive and angry, giving himself away at the end. Iceberg had held on to the act the whole way through.

“You seem tired,” Iceberg said suddenly. He patted his thigh. “Rest.”

Catnip didn’t protest despite wanting to. Iceberg liked control. He had eaten his lesser fellows for disobedience. Having glass for teeth made him more menacing. The key to staying on Iceberg’s good side was to just do what he said, however ridiculous it was.

She slunk around the table, lying along the bench with her helmet on his lap. She watched his claws stroke the edge of her visor. She imagined him diving down to crunch those inhumanly large jaws around her head.

Iceberg did no such thing. He began whistling a tune that the human Iceberg used to whistle. His claws kept petting her, visor rippling with the sounds. Content with their position.


	2. Present 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Catnip does have favorites among her monstrous pursuers...

If Catnip had to pick, the little ones were probably who she hung around the most. They reminded her of their own kids. Some of them were those kids, morphed into imposters. The others were…well…

The imposters had a weird way of multiplying. Little ones just grew off them, like buds on a tree, and hopped off when they were developed enough to survive on their own. It never took long. A few days at most before they tore free of their host imposter and fled into the tiny cracks in the ship. They were small and fearful and, now that the imposters were turning to cannibalism, the youths were easy prey.

Catnip had no clue if they somehow knew she wasn’t dangerous to them, but they seemed to swarm her wherever she rested.

There were eighteen now. Yesterday there were fifteen. They were multiplying faster, but they were also growing faster. It only took days and a lot of food for them to get to adult size…or what she thought was adult size. Man sized, to her knowledge.

She only had established names for those who had impersonated her crewmates, but it wasn’t hard to place names on any others who stuck out to her. If the imposters could be counted on for one thing, it was ensuring they looked unique compared to others in the colony. She had yet to cross a single imposter that looked identical to another on the Skeld.

You shouldn’t name things. That creates a connection. Attachment. A bond between you and the subject. That was dangerous, especially here where her subjects were actively looking to kill and eat her.

But she couldn’t peel her crewmates from the monsters they now were. And she had to quickly remember which ones to avoid and which ones were relatively safe. Names were needed, sadly.

The reaction time taken between recognizing “Romaine” and “the big green one with the ram horns that was once my best friend” could mean the difference between living and dying.

Catnip watched the mini imposters dart around. Their bodies distorted frequently, not quite able to hold up their disguises very well. Loose flesh and bone and teeth flashed all over as they wrestled and hissed and played. She was pretty sure it was playing. Unlike their adult counterparts, the youths seemed less interested in killing each other.

They were at the center of the crate pile in Storage. It was a hidey hole for Catnip and the youths, away from the vents where the adult imposters lounged and out of immediate view of anyone. Maybe none of them knew it was here.

It was nice to relax a little. To not have to hold up the act. The little ones didn’t seem to notice that she wasn’t distorting. That no teeth or random mouths or spiky flesh erupted from her suit. That she wasn’t one of them.

She was a passive adult. A caretaker of sorts. Uninterested in hurting or eating them. Safe.

The only fear Catnip had was of once they grew. Would they put the pieces together? Would they realize it was weird that she never displayed a true form, like their fellows? Would they finally realize what she actually was?

Catnip didn’t know. Hopefully The Skeld would be burnt wreckage before then.

He was watching her again. The little one in a black spacesuit with a green sprout growing from his helmet. She had jokingly labeled him Eggplant because he resembled one. Eggplant tended to stare at her while his fellows played.

She hoped something wasn’t wrong with him mentally. He’d be easy prey for the rest once they grew.

Catnip turned to the snack pile beside her, picking up a stringy piece of meat. The pile wasn’t for her. It was for them, because they got hungry and tended to bite often. What bits of bone and flesh she could squirrel away ended up here.

She couldn’t eat it. She wouldn’t. She knew where most of this meat came from. As disgusting as the preserved meal bar rations were, at least she knew they weren’t someone she knew.

Eggplant toddled forward, upper half falling back to reveal a ring of teeth. She didn’t shiver. She had seen all kinds of weirdness in the imposters’ bodies. Eggplant’s was rather tame, simply bisecting himself like that.

She dropped the meat in, watching the teeth crunch. He made a vacuum like noise as he swallowed before hoisting his upper half up again. Back to normal, a harmless looking mini.

Two more scurried over, both ice blue. Iceberg—the human Iceberg—had had two children of his own. They had both been eaten by their parent when he became an imposter. Even though Catnip knew these weren’t them, she couldn’t help but label them the same—Holly and Mistletoe.

The rest of the swarm noticed meat being given out and scrambled over, mouths sprouting everywhere as they squeaked, trying to catch her attention. Catnip fed each of them quickly, dodging nips and too-eager bites from them. Once sated, they dropped into a chubby pile of children.

A mini imposter cuddle puddle.

Catnip discreetly took a photo, her own personal pleasure. Even imposters could be cute. Pity these photos would never be seen. They were rather adorable.

Now that their safe space was quiet again, Catnip leaned back to rest. She was getting more and more tired lately. Physically, mentally, emotionally. All the levels. She rationally wrote it off as lack of proper light. The Skeld was rather dark usually, the imposters unable to operate Electrical very well.

But she knew the truth. She was just done. Hopeless.

She hoped the Polus colony managed to fix their reactors soon. If they could get their guns repaired and angled well enough, they could blow The Skeld out of the sky. That would at least put a dent in whatever plans these imposters had for humanity.

Why did they even attack The Skeld or Polus? What did they want? Iceberg had kept rats and other small animals in the Specimen Lab, but the imposters never tried to disguise themselves as those. They just ate the poor things. Were humanoid creatures the only ones that they could mimic? Or was it just humans?

If it was just humans, Catnip found that foolish. They were on the brink of extinction, surviving solely on Polus, The Skeld, and a few other scattered Mira colonies nearby. Humans were a dying race, fighting to resurrect themselves from the brink.

It was a limited prey item to choose, if that’s what it was. A narrow niche. No, that couldn’t be it.

A soft sound made her flinch, helmet banging the crate behind her. She hissed, resisting the urge to pull off her helmet. Her suit needed to stay on and intact. She had no idea how much the imposters had tampered with Oxygen, after all.

Eggplant stood there in front of her. He didn’t move any further. He just stared.

“Did you need something?” Catnip asked softly.

Eggplant tilted his tiny body to the side, all one movement. Then he straightened, toddling beside her leg. Fleshy tendrils squeezed from under his visor, wrapping around her hand.

Catnip froze. He was going to eat her. The jig was up. It wasn’t Romaine or Iceberg or even Captain Mint that would kill her. It would be little Eggplant, a mini imposter.

Eggplant did not split in half. He did not bite. The fleshy tendrils, like elongated tongues, lapped at the sticky blood on her gloves. That was all he did. He wanted just a bit more sustenance and decided the blood on her would suffice.

Catnip relaxed a bit. For a moment, she had been very afraid.

Eggplant froze suddenly. Catnip nearly asked what was wrong when she heard it. Voices from Storage, just beyond the crates they were hidden behind. Catnip turned her helmet, praying her audio sensors would pick it up.

“—mean you still can’t get it to work?”

That was Captain Mint. He sounded angry.

“I mean what I said. I’ve turned it, twisted it, I’ve even bitten it. The wheel will not let the ship move. But I did find something interesting. The wires in the console were torn. Our human stowaway has sabotaged us, as we once did them.”

That was Iceberg. A shiver tore through Catnip. After all these weeks, he had finally discovered what she had done to keep them adrift.

“Can you fix it?” Captain Mint growled, voice gurgling.

That’s right. Now Catnip remembered.

Right before her friend Wheat was thrown out the airlock, the quiet yellow-suited crewmate had torn her knife through the captain’s gut. His vocal chords must’ve been located there because his voice was never quite the same after that. It always gurgled and slurred, like he was drunk and about to vomit. It was awful to listen to, knowing how clear and precise his voice had once been. Compelling and powerful, the voice of a leader who cared for his people.

Not like the Captain Mint that existed now. Selfish and cruel, merrily tossing poor Wheat to her death in space before turning his fellows loose on the rest of the survivors. A true monster.

“Wires are not my thing. If we can find the human, perhaps it can fix the damage,” Iceberg replied. “I told you that we should’ve been watching how they operated this thing. You just wanted to eat.”

“I didn’t know that they’d kill our brothers on the planet’s surface,” Captain Mint hissed. “They were supposed to come get us. We weren’t supposed to have to go to them!”

“And now we’re trapped and dying out not far from a planet brimming with food,” Iceberg said coldly.

“Your job is to fix this! Not tell me what I already know!”

A sudden crash sounded. An impact. Iceberg roared. They were fighting. The crates shuddered but held strong as the two fought.

Catnip scrambled away from the wall. The crates were metal and wood, frail against the might of fully developed imposters. She had watched them break necks with ease. Crushing a few storage crates would be simple. Eggplant toddled with her, chirping to wake his fellows.

If they could break off to the east and get to Communications, maybe even Shields, they should be safe.

An even louder roar sounded, making Catnip freeze. A third contender had joined the fight—Romaine.

“What are you two doing? Fighting like minis over bones!”

The impacts got louder, as did the crushing and ripping of flesh. Captain Mint screamed. Iceberg howled louder. Romaine’s roar deafened all around, including Catnip and her entourage.

Catnip shoved aside a crate and booked it, the swarm of minis running after her. The trio of brawling imposters didn’t notice them, too wrapped up in their power struggle.

A small piece of her hoped Iceberg came out victorious. Captain Mint was dangerous and Romaine was the worst. At least if Iceberg won, he might keep those two in line better.

Communications shot by, then Shields. Safe. The noises died off.

Catnip slunk into an empty corner beneath a wire panel. The minis swarmed her, crawling on and behind her to crowd the empty spaces that her body left. Then they were all still, a dark shadow in a corner.

It was silent for a very long time before footsteps came her way.


	3. Past 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A dip into the past...

“Imposters?”

“Yeah,” Wheat said, walking alongside her friend. “That’s what Alfalfa said on the radio. It was crazy. Apparently Cinnamon suddenly grew extra mouths and just…massacred people. It was bad. Nobody even knew that anything was wrong with him.”

“How does that happen? What even was it?” Catnip asked, confused.

“Some alien life form that can mimic us, I guess,” Wheat replied, shrugging her shoulders. “The Polus colony is doing scans of everyone to see if there are more. Captain Mint might ask us to do the same.”

“You think one got on board The Skeld?”

“I hope not.” Wheat shuddered. “They sound creepy. And if that thing looked like Cinnamon, what happened to the real one?”

Catnip shivered, hugging herself. She didn’t need this today. Having to leave the Polus colony was bad enough, but to find out her home was under attack was worse. They had been lucky not to run into aggressive alien life so far.

“Hey, girls! Is everything okay?” Ivy popped around the corner, pink suit standing out in the gleaming silver halls of the ship.

“Yeah, just telling Catnip about Alfalfa’s message,” Wheat said.

“Ooh, that! Eugh.” One could imagine the disgusted look on Ivy’s face. “Yeah, I heard about that. The Captain is heading for Cafeteria. I think he’s about to call a—”

Red lights flashed on the ceiling, followed by a loud buzzer noise.

“—meeting,” Ivy finished.

“We better go,” Wheat encouraged, leading the way.

Just as they entered cafeteria, Catnip spotted Romaine. She waved, the green crewmate darting over. Iceberg waved back as well. Funny, Romaine didn’t like Iceberg that much. Had they been talking?

Captain Mint stood on the table. “Listen up! By now, I’m sure most of you have heard about the incident on Polus,” he said. “Details are still sketchy but we’re keeping contact with Polus until the situation has been resolved. While I am concerned, I don’t think we have to fear anything. I do ask that you keep an eye on each other, just in case. We have to trust each other. Any questions?”

“What do we do if one of those things got on board?” Chamomile asked.

“We’ll capture it, isolate it, and, if needed, eject it from the ship,” Captain Mint replied. “Iceberg is getting the lab ready in case we do have an incident. Hopefully we won’t need it. I won’t make scans mandatory unless enough of us feel we should.”

Captain Mint slunk down from the table, the medic scurrying to meet him. Catnip turned to Romaine. Wheat and Ivy ducked away to chat with the rest of the crew. They dispersed back into the ship’s depths, leaving the pair alone.

“Scary, huh?” Romaine said awkwardly.

“Very,” Catnip agreed. “How do we even know if one of us is a fake?”

“Hopefully we would know each other well enough,” Romaine said. “Besides, how long would one of these imposter things have lingered on Polus for before attacking someone?”

“I don’t know.” Catnip looked away.

“Are you…? You don’t think one is here, right?” Romaine asked, concerned.

“I don’t know. I hope not,” Catnip said. She could barely hold in her fears. “But if one did… Romaine, it mimicked Cinnamon so well. Alfalfa is his brother and he didn’t notice. How long was it there? Where was the real Cinnamon? Why?”

“Hey, easy, Catnip! Breathe!” Romaine encouraged, rubbing her back. “One thing at a time. What happened to Cinnamon was horrible, but we can’t do anything there. If one is on board, then eventually it’ll slip up like that one did. It’ll kill and we’ll find it. It can’t be that hard.”

“But how many will it kill before we find it? I don’t want anyone to die, Romaine,” Catnip croaked. She could feel her eyes stinging under her helmet.

“I don’t either,” Romaine said gently, pulling her into a hug. “We’ll get through this. Besides, one might not even be here. We could just be panicking for no reason.”

“Y-yeah, you’re right.” Catnip felt silly. “All this worry and…it might be over nothing. Besides, they only found the one on Polus. Maybe it was an isolated incident. Maybe Cinnamon is okay.”

“Maybe,” Romaine agreed, patting her shoulder. “It’s getting late. I should go check on Skullcap and Ivy. I saw them head toward Admin and I know they’re not supposed to be in there without supervision.”

Catnip giggled. Typical Romaine, trying to keep his friends out of trouble. She waved goodbye as the bigger crewmate disappeared down the hall.

But Catnip still felt uneasy. Just the idea of an imposter among them made her squirm. How easily could a fake blend in like that? Would they even know that anything was wrong before it was too late?

Catnip didn’t know. That was what scared her.

Even more than the dead body of Chamomile that they found the next morning, marking the beginning of The Skeld’s destruction…


	4. Present 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Back to the present, but more of the past will come...

Catnip jolted as the footsteps drew nearer. She looked toward the Shields, waiting. Tensed to run if she had to. The minis hissed softly, scared.

It was Captain Mint.

The imposter stumbled from the hall to Storage. He was covered in blood, helmet cracked. His captain’s hat had a chunk torn out of it, exposing it as flesh rather than cloth. A large mouth gasped across his chest, sharp teeth red from the fight.

He didn’t seem to see her. He grasped the handrail, legs barely supporting him. That was when Catnip realized that his left arm was gone.

She didn’t know if imposters could regenerate lost parts.

Captain Mint snarled, the mouth on his chest oozing. “How dare they? I am the captain! They must obey me! How dare they attack me?”

Catnip stayed still in her corner. Maybe he wouldn’t see her.

“How dare they?” he growled, foam and spittle bubbling from between the teeth. “I’m doing all I can! They are doing nothing! The humans were easier to control! Should’ve kept them rather than these traitors!”

Footsteps came from the hall. Catnip froze.

Captain Mint spun around, snarling. A sharp spike shot from the dark, piercing his chest. He shrieked, falling back. The metal floor was splattered anew with red. The captain dragged himself backward, kicking with his boots. His wheezing and gasping got louder.

“Were the captain. Human captain. Now you are nothing.”

Romaine stepped out from the dark, huge and imposing. He towered over the fallen captain easily. Catnip shrank back when she saw the remnants of a dark green limb disappear into the mouth along Romaine’s shoulder. He’d eaten the captain’s arm.

“Not our captain. Nothing,” Romaine growled. “You are nothing.”

“I am the captain! You obey me!” Captain Mint screeched, trying to rise. His boots slipped on the bloody floor, sending him on his face. “I got us here! I lead this place!”

His second attempt to get up was stopped by a boot to the back of his head. His visor cracked as it was ground against the floor. Romaine loomed, putting more of his weight into the pinning move. Captain Mint’s growls became whimpers, fear lacing his voice.

“Everything you say. Lies! Left us here to die!” Romaine roared. “No more! Who needs wheel? Will make ship move myself!”

“And how will you do that, Romaine? Scream at it?”

Iceberg limped from the dark, clutching at his ribs. His visor was split in two, glassy teeth clicking as he spoke. He had just as much blood on him as the other two imposters did.

“It’s a machine. The humans can operate them,” Iceberg continued. ‘There is one still on the ship somewhere. If we can find it, we can make this prison move. Return to the planet, where food awaits.”

Romaine snarled. “You never said that!”

“We were unsure about the human until we found the damage to the wheel. Now we’ve confirmed it and have to find it,” Iceberg said. “If it survived to do that, it may still be alive somewhere here.”

Romaine growled louder, grinding his boot down on Captain Mint’s helmet. Then he let up, stepping away.

“No more waiting. We find it now,” Romaine demanded. “Find it, make it fix ship, then eat it!”

“We know its DNA is different. Their scanner will operate for it, identify it. By now, its scent is hidden and it had done well to hide among us,” Iceberg said. “Ironic. We did the same to it.”

“How do we find it?” Romaine barked, irritated.

Catnip slowly inched her way along the wall. If she could duck into the hall, she could run north and escape. She just had to avoid catching their attention.

“Bring each to the scanner. See if it runs. It will take time, but we will find it eventually,” Iceberg replied.

“Want it found now!” Romaine roared.

“That isn’t possible,” Iceberg said. His helmet shifted. “Who is that? Come out.”

Catnip froze. His helmet had turned toward her. Had he seen her somehow? Maybe if she didn’t move…

“Fine. I will come to you. Do not run. I will chase you and I will hurt you,” Iceberg said.

Catnip’s heart sunk. Iceberg walked past his snarling fellow, coming toward the shadowy corner where she and the minis were hidden. There was nowhere to run.

A tiny shape darted over her lap and into the light.

“Pathetic! Looking for minis now?” Romaine scoffed.

Eggplant hissed, tiny body puffing up. Iceberg stopped in his tracks, regarding the black-clad mini. Eggplant did not back away. He kept hissing.

“Strange. They usually run,” Iceberg muttered. “Why are you staying, little one? Do you wish to die?”

Catnip wanted to reach out, to grab Eggplant. To tell him to come back. She didn’t want to watch him die. Iceberg was not a merciful killer. He enjoyed torture, watching the life bleed from his victims. Eggplant would certainly suffer.

She was so focused on Eggplant that she didn’t see Captain Mint lurch up from the ground, throwing himself at Romaine. Trying to wrestle the larger to the floor, tearing at his helmet, trying to bite. To retake victory in their power struggle.

She only heard Romaine’s sudden roar. She looked up to see him fling the captain away…right at her. Even down an arm, the captain would be heavy. There was nowhere for her to go to evade his flying body.

Catnip closed her eyes and braced for impact.


	5. Past 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The second murder and the beginning of our hero's breakdown...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've titled the chapters to differentiate the past and present scenes.

“One has to be on board, unless someone here has decided to go on a murder spree,” Iceberg said. “Poor boy, He didn’t deserve this.”

Catnip hugged herself. Chamomile was dead. There was no denying this. Their fears might’ve come true after all.

“What do we do?” Wheat asked, clinging to the captain’s arm.

“We’ll figure this out,” Captain Mint reassured her. “Scans seem to be our best bet. Iceberg, start getting the scanner ready. I want everyone here lined up and scanned as soon as possible. If one is here, I want it found before it can kill again.”

“Got it, sir,” Iceberg said, leaving the Cafeteria to do as he was told.

“It could be anyone,” Ivy muttered, looking around warily.

“Don’t become paranoid. This will be fixed quickly. If Polus could do it, so can we,” Captain Mint said firmly. “We’ll keep a line of communication between everyone. A web of awareness, so to say. Remember, it’s only one.”

“We don’t know that,” Catnip said shakily. “We just know only one person is dead. Polus only found one, but there clearly were two if this one got on The Skeld. There could be more.”

“We’ll keep that in mind but until we know better, let’s not jump the gun,” Captain Mint suggested gently. “Chamomile will be missed. Let us focus on hunting this thing down before it can take anyone else from us. We are many. It is possibly alone. Let us keep it that way.”

The crew broke up, most sticking to groups of two or three. Catnip slowly shuffled toward Chamomile’s corpse as Romaine zipped up the body bag.

“Are you okay?” she asked. “You were really quiet.”

“Just thinking,” Romaine replied. “Do you really think there might be more?”

“I don’t know. Do you?” Catnip asked. “Or do you think I’m crazy to think that?”

“It’s possible,” Romaine said, lifting the body bag into his arms. “But let’s do what the captain says. Don’t overthink it.”

“Right,” Catnip muttered, head lowered.

Romaine walked away with Chamomile’s body. While rare, people did die on The Skeld from time to time, usually of sickness or natural causes. In such instances, the bodies were incinerated and the ashes ejected into space. It was the easiest and cleanest way to do it.

Catnip didn’t see many people around for most of the day. She went about her schedule as usual. Probably the only interesting thing she witnessed was poking into Medical and seeing Iceberg calibrating the scanner. Everyone else seemed to have vanished.

Maybe she was being paranoid. Maybe Romaine was right. Maybe she was overthinking it.

Around dinner, Catnip wanted to think that she had finally relaxed. She had spent some time with Iceberg’s kids and eaten a hearty lunch. She left Romaine alone. He seemed hurt deeply by Chamomile’s death. She hadn’t known that they were friends.

Now that she thought about it, she didn’t know anyone here all that well. Wheat and Ivy had been born with her and they had always gotten along. Romaine was in boot camp with her and they had always partnered up. Yeah, she knew some of his favorites and they got along great…but that was it.

Did she really know him? Or anyone here? Was she qualified to tell the difference between an imposter and her crewmates?

Catnip wasn’t sure. It made her anxieties spike again.

And it only got worse when she heard the gunshot go off. It sounded like a bomb.

Catnip broke into a run toward it. Who had shot? Who was shot? Why was a gun used? Was the imposter found? Was somebody else murdered?

She rounded the corner into Cameras and saw Skullcap there, gun smoking. Ivy was dead on the floor. Her visor was cracked, red splattered on her pink suit. Skullcap looked up at Catnip, blood on his dark blue gloves.

“Catnip, I…” Skullcap choked. “Look, this isn’t what it looks like. It was her! She wasn’t herself, I swear! The imposter, it has to be her! She’s been acting so…weird! Please, you’ve got to believe me!”

Catnip didn’t know what to do. Her world became a blur as the crew flooded into the room. The gun was ripped from Skullcap’s hands by Captain Mint. There was a lot of yelling and screaming. Iceberg shouted to drag both to the scanner, that it was ready.

All she knew was that one of her friends was dead.


	6. Present 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Catnip makes an error. Iceberg makes a guess. Romaine enjoys his entertainment.

Catnip was right. Captain Mint was heavy, even missing an arm. His body slammed into hers, crushing her and several minis into the corner. She tasted copper on her tongue.

Eggplant shrieked, whipping around to dart toward them. Iceberg watched curiously.

She needed to get him off of her. Wedging her knee against the captain’s back, she shoved until he slid along the floor away from her. The dark green imposter groaned but did not rise.

The minis scurried out of the corner, whimpering and wheezing. None of them had enjoyed being crushed.

Just as fast as they took to freedom, they shot back to the corner. To Catnip. They were afraid again.

Catnip planted her spine against the wall, her back making an open triangle of space for them. A growl bubbled in her throat. Eggplant perched by her boot, hissing angrily. The shadows only got darker.

“So you’re who I saw. Catnip, was it? What an odd place to be…and with so many minis…” Iceberg said. “Are you why that one didn’t run? Strange.”

Romaine approached but he didn’t seem to care about Catnip or the minis. He brought his boot down on Captain Mint’s stump. The captain writhed, shrieking. Romaine ground his boot on the injury, toothy mouths stretching wide with pleasure.

“Thought you could jump me? Fool! Better than you! Always was! Always will be!” Romaine growled. “Maybe I’ll eat you. Your arm tasted good.”

“If we’re eating him, I’ll take some,” Iceberg said, helmet tilting toward his fellow.

“You get what you grab!” Romaine snarled, teeth bared.

“You’ll leave leftovers,” Iceberg said confidently. “You always do. At least take your meal elsewhere. I think you’re making our guests uncomfortable.”

“Eating minis?” Romaine taunted.

Iceberg didn’t reply. Romaine snorted before seizing Captain Mint by his remaining arm. He started dragging the other away. Captain Mint cried out, boots squeaking as he tried to fight back.

For a moment, Catnip saw Wheat in his place. Poor Wheat as she was thrown into the airlock by the man she loved. A man that was a monster.

“W-wait!”

The words were out before she could stop them. It made Romaine pause. Iceberg looked back at her. Catnip wanted to shrink away but it was too late.

“What? Want some too?” Romaine growled.

Catnip swallowed. Do or die. “Must you eat him? Surely there is other food.”

“Like your minis?” the ram-horned imposter asked. It almost sounded sarcastic.

“There are enough corpses. Must you make more?” Catnip asked.

“Fools must be eaten. Too many as is,” Romaine growled, claws sinking into Captain Mint’s arm. “No room for useless ones.”

So they must not be able to regenerate. Captain Mint’s arm was gone for good. The thought made Catnip shudder. She may not like him much but the idea of watching someone she knew being eaten alive by someone else she knew…it made her sick to her stomach.

“Why do you care if he dies?”

Catnip lurched backward into the corner. Iceberg was right there in front of her, crouched, rocking on his heels. He was so close that his visor nearly touched hers. There was almost no personal space. Catnip unconsciously shoved Eggplant behind her with the rest.

“I just…don’t see the point. There’s enough food. Why generate more?” she said.

“Why not? More food, less mouths to feed. Though we could eat all of those minis too. That would achieve a similar result,” Iceberg reasoned. “Why haven’t you eaten them yet? They seem to like you.”

“I already ate,” Catnip said quickly, trying to get distance between them. It wasn’t working.

“Full? I’ll gladly finish them off for you,” Iceberg said. He reached past her, deaf to the minis’ sudden cries of terror.

Catnip wasn’t sure why a gun went off. The noise was so loud in her ears. Iceberg froze, allowing the minis to dart further behind Catnip. Even Romaine paused, turning back to look at them. Captain Mint ceased begging for his life.

Then Catnip realized it wasn’t a gun. It was her hand.

She had just slapped Iceberg across the face. Mouth. Visor. The ice blue imposter was frozen in shock. Terror struck her instantly.

“I’m sorry,” Catnip squeaked. “I didn’t mean to.”

Iceberg suddenly snarled, seizing her by the front of her suit. He stood, dragging her to her feet and then off of them. The minis screamed, crushed into the corner in a pile of multicolored horror. Romaine began to laugh, dropping Captain Mint’s arm to hold his stomach. Captain Mint lay there, staring.

“How dare you? You dare attack me?” Iceberg growled, visor splitting apart into a glassy mouth. “I have treated you well, Catnip. This is how you repay me?”

“It was an accident! You scared me! I’m sorry!” Catnip begged.

“You’re sorry?” Iceberg’s teeth crunched and clicked against one another. His shoulders heaved with rage. “You’re sorry?”

“I’m sorry,” Catnip repeated. “Please, Iceberg, I’m sorry. It was reflex. It won’t happen again.”

“You’re sorry?” Iceberg seemed so focused on that sentence. His heaving slowed. His grip on her loosened. Catnip could feel the toes of her boots touch the floor again. “You’re sorry…”

“I’m sorry,” Catnip said. That seemed to be working, though she didn’t know why.

“You’re sorry.” Iceberg set her back on her feet. He leaned in, teeth nearly touching her visor. “You are sorry.”

Catnip tried not to flinch. She saw his glassy teeth tapping her visor. He could break it so easily, see the squishy human beneath.

Iceberg released her. Catnip took a step back. She could feel Eggplant against her heel, chirping. The minis ceased screaming, falling silent. Romaine’s laughter died off.

“You are odd,” Iceberg said softly. “Why, Catnip? Why are you odd?”

“I don’t know. How am I odd?” Catnip asked, playing dumb.

“You don’t want to see Mint die. You won’t eat the minis. I’ve never seen you resort to violence.” Iceberg visor parted, a gaping black maw of shining glass. “How odd.”

“I’m just not hungry,” Catnip defended. She prayed that her words weren’t shaking.

“Or maybe you aren’t one of us,” Iceberg hissed.

Catnip’s heart dropped to the floor just as she felt the seal of her helmet break from her suit.


	7. Present 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Iceberg learns a fascinating lesson about minis.

This is it. This is where she died. Iceberg knew that she wasn’t an imposter. Maybe he had known all along and had played her for a fool.

Catnip closed her eyes as she felt the first hisses of cold air invade her helmet. She felt the points of his claws break the seal, scratching at her throat. Her helmet lifted, separating from her suit.

He would kill her. He would eat her. But first, he would make her take them to Polus.

She wouldn’t let him. She would grab her gun, shoot herself. He’d never see it coming.

She never had the chance.

Iceberg snarled, pulling back from her. Catnip’s helmet dropped back the few inches that it had been lifted, sealing again. She opened her eyes in surprise. Why was she still alive?

“Eggplant!” she cried in shock.

Iceberg stood there, staring at his wrist. Eggplant was wrapped around it, teeth sawing into the limb. The mini was growling, drooling, hissing as he bit. Iceberg didn’t try to tear him off. He simply watched the mini work.

“How strange,” Iceberg said. “This is the second time that this mini has defended you. It can’t be yours. The color is wrong. Why is it behaving this way then?”

Catnip wanted to reach up, to pull Eggplant off of Iceberg. Any second now, Iceberg would grab and eat the mini. She had to save him. Her arms wouldn’t move, solid as stone at her sides.

A disgusting ripping noise sounded and Eggplant suddenly dropped. Catnip’s arms regained mobility and lunged to catch him. The mini was safe, body crunching and jiggling in her hands. Funny, why did he look red? Her gloves too…

Then Catnip realized it wasn’t just Eggplant and her gloves. It was her visor. Red blood had sprayed across it. She looked up and her mouth dropped in shock.

“Fascinating. Such quick work for a mini,” Iceberg said, looking over his severed right wrist. The stump spurted blood, painting Catnip’s suit.

“You let it eat you!” Romaine roared.

“I didn’t think it could,” Iceberg said in wonder. “Minis are weak, fragile. Can they all do this? We’ve never bothered with them before. Curious.”

Romaine marched over, seizing Iceberg’s shoulder. Iceberg turned to him, poking at his bleeding stump. Romaine growled, grabbing and squeezing it. The blood flow lessened.

“Fool, letting mini eat your hand,” Romaine growled.

“They can be as dangerous as us, even at that size. Fascinating,” Iceberg whispered. “I thought they were useless until they matured. To take my hand…”

Catnip stared down at Eggplant, finally realizing what the mini had done. The mini swallowed, the last of Iceberg’s hand vanished into his guts. A long serpentine tongue licked at his suit, then at Catnip’s gloves. Then he rose and spun, hopping to try and lick at her visor, hungry for every drop.

She glanced up. Iceberg and Romaine seemed too engrossed in each other now. She could escape.

She edged out of the corner, toward the open hall. The minis scurried with her, silent. Good. Catnip kept firm watch over the pair.

Iceberg kept marveling at his missing hand. Romaine berated him, trying to tighten his grip on the wound. For a moment, the two looked like friends rather than rivals. Could imposters have friends?

Catnip took her chance. She bolted down the hall, minis swarming after her. If the two imposters noticed her, they didn’t give chase.

She didn’t know what she was going to do now. Would Iceberg seek revenge? Would Romaine? Was she safe or in danger? She didn’t know.

She decided it was safe to assume that one or both would come after her. She needed to hide.

She ran past the Cockpit, stopping when she reached Admin. She ducked under the huge central table. The minis followed, huddling close. Most of them joined Eggplant in licking at Iceberg’s blood. They were probably hungry again.

It was quiet for a while. Catnip dared to breathe. If Iceberg or Romaine were pursuing her, they must’ve gone the wrong way or were taking their sweet time. Or they weren’t chasing her at all.

She could hope that they wouldn’t chase her.

Hours passed. Catnip dared to slink out from under the table to hunt for lingering scraps of meat. That kept the minis sated. They dozed and Catnip, after much thinking, decided to join them. She was exhausted.

She was roused by the squeaking of boots. She opened her eyes. Dark green boots were at the head of the table. Blood dripped on the left side of them. The boots shook before knees slammed down in front of them.

The owner was wheezing. She knew that wheeze.

“I know that you’re there,” Captain Mint groaned. “Catnip, please…”

He suddenly slumped sideways, landing in her view. He could definitely see her too. Blood pooled from his lost arm.

“Please help.”


	8. Past 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The doubt and fear grows once Skullcap is locked up...

“No! She was being so suspicious! She has to be an imposter!” Skullcap shouted.

“The scanner said that you’re both human,” Iceberg said, tightening the cuffs around his crewmate’s wrists. “Paranoia got to you. This is for your safety as much as for ours, Skullcap.”

“No. No, she can’t be! I wouldn’t if it was her!” Skullcap pleaded. “Captain, you can’t do this to me! Please! Ivy had to be one of them!”

“But you did,” Iceberg said. “You killed Ivy. You could do the same to someone else.”

“You’ll be safer here than anywhere else, Skullcap,” Captain Mint said. “Take responsibility for your actions and put everyone else’s safety first. Or do you want to kill another innocent?”

Skullcap fell quiet.

Iceberg gently pushed Skullcap into the cell. The door closed loudly behind him, Captain Mint locking it. Skullcap sunk to the ground, shaking.

“She was…herself? But then…why? She wanted nothing to do with me. That’s not like her,” he muttered. “I could’ve sworn… No…”

“Let this be a lesson to the rest of us,” Captain Mint said, facing the rest of the crew. “Don’t make snap decisions on your own. We don’t need to be taking each other out by accident.”

“We should bag up Ivy,” Wheat said softly. “She and Chamomile can be ejected together.”

“I’ll go get her,” Romaine volunteered. “Catnip, can you come with me? After that, it’s probably not safe to be alone anymore.”

Catnip nodded slowly. Her head was still spinning. They left the cells together, heading back upstairs.

“Why would he shoot her? They loved each other. Shouldn’t they know each other best?” Catnip asked, hugging herself.

“Fear can override that, I guess,” Romaine said. “Skullcap was overthinking things. He saw clues that weren’t there. Ivy paid the price.”

“How can you be so cold about this? She was our friend, Romaine!” Catnip shouted.

Romaine stared. “I’m not being cold. I’m being factual. If you’re too emotional in this, that’s how it gets you. That’s what happened to Skullcap. We have to keep a level head.”

“I don’t like that. It makes you seem robotic,” Catnip said, looking away. She sniffled.

They were quiet for the rest of the walk.

By the time they reached Cameras, the guilt was bubbling in Catnip. Romaine was right. Maybe it seemed cold, but he wasn’t wrong.

“Look, Romaine, I’m sorry. That was horrible of me to say,” she said.

“No, it’s fine. You’re right. I probably sound like a robot,” Romaine reassured her. “I guess I’m just…trying not to let it get to me. You know what I mean?”

“I think so, yeah. Ivy was my friend. I’ve known her since we were tiny,” Catnip explained. “Knowing she’s gone…”

“It must hurt. I’m sorry,” Romaine said, patting her shoulder. “Hopefully we can catch this thing before it can get anyone else.”

“Yeah.” Catnip nodded. She stepped into Cameras. “…Oh my god.”

“Where is she?” Romaine asked, looking around in a panic.

Ivy’s body was gone, leaving only a thick red smear. The path led to the vent in the corner. Romaine shot for it, finding the screws missing. One could lift the vent cover easily and crawl in. The blood path continued inside, vanishing into the darkness.

“Something dragged her into the vents,” Romaine said shakily. “That doesn’t make sense. We were all downstairs!”

“Were we?” Catnip asked, struggling to picture everyone at the cells. “Maybe Ivy wasn’t dead?”

“The scanner would’ve picked up a heartbeat,” Romaine argued. Then it dawned on him. “Unless these things don’t have heartbeats.”

“The scanner said they were both human. Unless the scanner malfunctioned,” Catnip said.

“Or was sabotaged,” Romaine muttered, tapping his visor.

“Sabotaged? How? Can one do that to the scanner?” Catnip asked.

“I don’t know. Only Iceberg would know. We’d have to ask,” Romaine replied. “Regardless, we have to tell the captain that Ivy is gone. Whoever or whatever this is, it’s using the vents to get around. The vents go everywhere. Nowhere is safe.”

Romaine broke into a run from the room. Catnip was hot on his heels. The terror grew stronger in her heart.


	9. Past 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The suspicions deepen, but is it for the right reasons?

Days passed without another murder. Skullcap was still locked away. The captain was checking on him frequently. Slowly, the terror of Chamomile and Ivy’s deaths faded.

But the knowledge of the intruder possibly on board The Skeld stayed there, poking at their minds. Tormenting them.

Iceberg had checked over the scanner, finding it whole and functional. No sabotage. Ivy was definitely human and dead. Something had gone for her body when it was left alone. If everyone was being honest, then they all had been at the cells when Skullcap was locked away.

If everyone was being honest…

Catnip found herself flinching at every shadow. Noises that couldn’t be explained had her scurrying. She shoved her dresser over the vent in her room, even though the screws were still intact on it. She considered asking the captain to have them double up with sleeping arrangements. She didn’t want to be alone.

She clung to Wheat more often. Romaine had grown distant, frequently checking the vents and monitoring The Skeld’s systems. Everyone seemed to be looking at each other differently now.

Suspicious. Fearful. Untrusting.

“This is getting out of control,” Wheat said. “We were all at the cells. None of us could’ve taken Ivy, unless we have an extra person or thing on board. And if that’s the case, then we’re all safe.”

“You think they might have forms before looking like one of us?” Catnip asked.

“They must. They can’t look like people before they find someone, right?” Wheat reasoned. “Nobody has vanished since Ivy. We must all still be human.”

“Unless it grabbed someone since then and now one of us isn’t real,” Catnip muttered.

“Surely we’d notice! The captain most of all. He knows all of us very well!” Wheat exclaimed. “He’d know if someone was acting weird.”

“I’ve wondered if I’d know,” Catnip admitted. “I don’t think I would.”

“I think you would. We know more about each other than we think we do,” Wheat said gently, leaning against her. “But…I think I know what you mean.”

“Huh?”

Wheat shifted against her. “I’ve…tried to tell myself that I’m imagining it, but I keep…noticing things. Things I never paid attention to before. The way people write, what hands they use for things, how they talk. Little things, you know? My brain keeps yelling ‘that’s wrong, that’s not how that person does that’. I have to stop myself a lot.”

“I’ve done that too. Romaine says that’s what caused Skullcap to kill Ivy,” Catnip said. “He saw things that weren’t there and took them as truth. But I have to wonder…what if he’s wrong? What if we are seeing those things and they are incorrect?”

“I don’t know,” Wheat said. “I’m trying to be rational. I really am.”

“Me too,” Catnip said, hugging her.

That discussion stuck with her days later when they found Leek dead in Reactor. Not far from his body was Bok. Both had died together, fixing issues with the reactor. It had been malfunctioning lately, almost suspiciously so.

Everyone had an alibi. There were no clues to be found.

Catnip stayed behind as Romaine quietly bagged up the bodies. “Do you think one can kill two at once? Or do we have multiple imposters?”

“Don’t know,” Romaine replied, hauling Leek over his shoulder. “Can you help?”

Catnip shuffled over, picking up Bok’s body bag. It was heavy but she managed. They carried the pair to the Incinerator.

“I’ll deal with them, Catnip. You can go,” Romaine offered, waving her off.

“Are you sure?” she asked, hesitant. They shouldn’t be alone now.

“Not a good thing to watch. Trust me,” Romaine said, bending to unzip Leek’s bag. “Stinks. Need to shower after. Catch up with you later.”

Catnip hesitated before agreeing. “Okay. See you then.”

As she headed for the door, her brain piped up again. It was something she normally would’ve written off as nonsense. It was only once she reached the Cafeteria that she stopped and mulled it over.

Was Romaine left-handed? She could’ve sworn that he was right-handed…


	10. Present 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Catnip does something that she is quick to regret...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shoddy medical knowledge ahead! Because I'm not a doctor. And we're dealing with aliens, so...yeah.

Catnip didn’t know what the captain expected her to do. She didn’t have the medical training needed for anything surgical. The most she could do was try to tie up his stump and minimize the bleeding.

That required getting close enough to him for him to try to hurt her.

Captain Mint lay on the floor of Admin, his blood adding to the filth on the floor. He wheezed weakly, mouths sprouting and vanishing across his body at random intervals. It was like he couldn’t control himself.

She remembered him doing something similar when Wheat stabbed him. Maybe it was a pain response?

“Please,” Captain Mint begged. “Please, Catnip…”

“Why should I?” Catnip asked bitterly. “I didn’t want to watch you die. That doesn’t mean I want to help you.”

“Please…”

Catnip withdrew further under the table. She wasn’t ready to get close to her friend’s murderer.

The minis squeaked, darting forward. They were curious. It wasn’t everyday that they saw one of the adults on the ground, living and bleeding. He must look quite appetizing. Surely eating him would help most of them mature quickly. That was a lot of meat.

“Don’t,” Catnip advised, sweeping the minis away. “He’ll probably eat you first.”

The longer she watched Captain Mint lay there, the more she felt sorry for him. Losing a limb must hurt. Did they suffer from blood loss the same way as humans? He certainly seemed weak when he fell.

Could this kill him? Would he eventually die?

Catnip finally broke down after an hour. She slunk out from under the table, collecting the first aid kit hooked to the wall. The imposters had ignored them, among other objects and devices, so the tools and materials inside were fully intact. She wished she could use one of the tablets to access the internet, to look up how to properly bind a stump.

Looks like she was flying this one blind. Wonderful.

“I’m going to bind your arm,” Catnip said as she crouched beside him. “If you try anything, I’m leaving you to bleed out.”

Captain Mint coughed, body seizing briefly. “Thank you.”

Catnip sat, hauling him partway onto her knees. Pressure was probably her best bet. That would minimize the bleeding fastest. She picked up a tourniquet, wrapping it around the stump and pulling the straps tight. The captain tensed, hissing. Catnip kept up the pressure, tying the tourniquet tightly.

“You have to leave this on,” Catnip instructed, grabbing a folded sheet of thick cloth and a roll of bandages. “I’m going to wrap it up now so that it doesn’t get infected.”

Could imposters get infections? She saw raw flesh exposed from them as their bodies morphed and changed often enough. Maybe such a thing didn’t exist for them?

She decided that it was better not to find out. She applied the bandages, wrapping up the rest of the stump. The dressings darkened almost immediately. She would have to change them.

Captain Mint wheezed as he lay there. Not once did he attempt to do anything to her. He was oddly passive. Maybe losing his arm to Romaine had taught him a lesson. That or he was in some kind of shock.

Catnip wouldn’t complain. She preferred him like this.

“There, that should do it.” Catnip carefully lowered him back to the floor. “Try not to move for a bit.”

Captain Mint tilted his helmet toward her. “He was right. You are odd.”

Catnip frowned. “I could’ve let you die. Maybe I should?” She moved her hand, as if to undo everything she had just done.

Captain Mint hissed, jerking away. He kicked out with a boot. Catnip withdrew, smirking under her helmet. It was nice to see an imposter squirm like that.

“No! No,” he hissed. “No, I will rest. I will heal. They will pay.”

Catnip slunk back under the table. “Do what you want.”

Captain Mint scooted back until he hit a console. He sat up, resting his back against it. He watched her, shadowed under the table. Neither moved for a while.

“The minis,” he hissed. “Why do they favor you?”

“I don’t see a point in eating them,” Catnip replied, sticking to her story. “And if they like me, then I might have allies when they mature. I know I have none right now.”

Captain Mint grunted. “None?”

“None,” Catnip confirmed. “I doubt Iceberg favors me after that mishap. Romaine is attached to this body because of his act with the crewmates. There’s nothing else. He wouldn’t protect me if I was threatened.”

Captain Mint watched her. “Would those minis still protect you if they knew of your human scent?”

Catnip suddenly regretted helping him. Now she was definitely going to rip that tourniquet off and let him die.


	11. Present 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Captain Mint makes an offer. Catnip refuses. Then the captain sweetens the deal how only an imposter could...

Captain Mint wheezed, almost laughing. “I’m right, aren’t I? I noticed when you were tending to me. You smell human. Your scent leaked out when Iceberg lifted your helmet, didn’t it?”

“I don’t know what you mean,” Catnip denied.

“Human scent has died out on this ship,” Captain Mint said. “The last time I smelled it was when we took over this thing completely. I thought we got you all…but you lived.”

Catnip bit her lip. Now what? Did she keep denying it? Or did she give up and just kill him?

Could she kill him? He was still an imposter. Even down an arm, he was going to be stronger than her. Killing her would be easy for him.

Captain Mint chuckled. “I was originally…going to have you fix this thing…and take us to the planet. But now… Now I have a different idea. An offer for you, Catnip, if you’ll take it.”

“An offer? Of what?” Catnip asked, wary.

“You are human. You want to save your kind,” Captain Mint said. “I want our kind to thrive. I want to eat. But I want to lead. Romaine, he is…trouble. Too much. I want him gone. Iceberg too. I want this ship emptied of those that dare stand against me.”

“And how many would that be?” Catnip asked, rolling her eyes. “Nobody likes anyone on this ship. And I don’t like any of you.”

“Your minis,” Captain Mint hissed. “The minis don’t see you as a threat. They can be molded, taught. They are few, but they are powerful.”

“They have to be if they want to survive you guys,” Catnip said coldly. “Get to the point.”

“Help me get rid of the rest. You and your minis can live. The rest must go,” Captain Mint growled. “You will fix this ship and take me to the planet.”

“I’m not taking you to Polus!” Catnip snarled. “I’d rather die!”

“Wait, wait! Let me finish,” Captain Mint pleaded. “You can have your loved ones. Your choice. Surely there are those you hate on that planet. Let me have them. Then I will go. I will find another planet.”

“Or I can kill you here and not have to deal with that,” Catnip said.

“Romaine and Iceberg will find you and make you fix this ship so they can eat all of your kind,” Captain Mint pointed out. He wheezed roughly, coughing. “They’ll take all. I only want few.”

“You won’t keep your word,” Catnip hissed.

“I am crippled, weak. You could kill me,” Captain Mint said. “They won’t be reasoned with. I can be.”

“Can you?” Catnip challenged.

Captain Mint nodded. “I can. Please. Romaine, he will kill us both.”

“And you think you can protect me? Or that I can protect you?” Catnip asked sarcastically. “I’m not that foolish, Mint.”

“I could sell you out. I could eat you, even.”

“You need me to fix the ship. You won’t kill me.”

They were stuck at a stalemate. Captain Mint hissed, chest heaving as he breathed. Catnip glared at him from under the table.

“You die one way. You live the other,” Captain Mint wheezed. “You want to live, yes?”

“I don’t care if I live. I just don’t want you things to hurt anyone else. You’ve taken enough from me,” Catnip said coldly.

“Forget the planet then. Renegotiate that later,” Captain Mint begged. “Focus on now. Romaine is dangerous for us both. He must be dealt with.”

“Again, you think either of us can fight him? He ripped your arm off. He could easily kill me,” Catnip said. “The same goes for Iceberg. You sure knew who to pick when it came to infesting this ship.”

“I have many regrets about that. You would’ve been better,” Captain Mint admitted. “You survived this long. Clever.”

“Lucky, more like,” Catnip said. “And that’s not an admission. You’re delusional if you think I’m human.”

Captain Mint chuckled. “Fine. Keep your secret. We will handle it later.”

“I didn’t agree to help you or anything,” Catnip said quickly. “But Romaine is an issue. Iceberg might be too. You’re no better than either of them.”

“I haven’t eaten you yet. I had many chances.”

“I haven’t killed you yet. I’ve had many chances,” Catnip mocked.

The dark green imposter huffed, falling silent. The lights overhead suddenly blinked on, then off, then on again. Captain Mint winced at the sudden brightness.

“I guess someone is playing in Electrical,” Catnip said, blinking to clear away the sudden glare.

“Easily fascinated by that,” the captain grumbled, helmet sinking against his shoulders.

“Funny how you can sabotage and play with The Skeld’s internal systems, but you can’t get the ship to move,” Catnip teased.

“Simple systems versus complex system. And torn wires,” Captain Mint argued.

“That would be an issue, wouldn’t it? Torn wires,” Catnip muttered, proud of herself.

Catnip mulled over this new mess. Captain Mint certainly brought up good points. If Romaine wasn’t around, maybe it’d be easier to get around this ship. And if most of the imposters were destroyed or ejected somehow, then that was less danger overall to deal with. Then that would leave the captain and the minis.

She could see herself ejecting Captain Mint. That wouldn’t be a problem.

The minis, though. Eggplant especially. Could she do that? Could she really eject or kill them? Eggplant had single-handedly rescued her from Iceberg. Even if he was an imposter, he was protecting her like a friend…or a mother…

“Do you have any idea how to get rid of Romaine and the others? If I did agree to this, I mean,” Catnip asked.

“I have ideas. Humans are clever, but imposters know each other better,” Captain Mint said. “Many ways to kill each other. It’s very easy to do.”

Catnip watched him warily. Did she dare?

“And if you double-cross me?”

“Kill me,” Captain Mint said. “We both know you could.”

“Could I? Really?” Catnip asked, doubting his words.

Captain Mint growled. His chest shifted, the dark green skin parting to reveal open flesh and musculature. A pulsing organ was lifted from the cavity. For a moment, Catnip almost thought it was a heart.

“This is core. What makes imposters tick. Only solid part of body that doesn’t change when we do,” Captain Mint said. “Equivalent to human heart and brain. Keeps us alive. If this is damaged or destroyed, imposter dies.”

“And it’s in your chest?” Catnip asked.

“In my chest. Different place in different imposter,” Captain Mint explained. The organ was pulled back into him, skin sealing up again. “Heavily protected. Thick skin, dense muscle. Best way to kill is intense heat or cold. Open space is deadly.”

“So either the Incinerator or ejecting you into space basically kills you,” Catnip said softly. “And you’re telling me this why?”

“Because humans are weak. Easily killed. Few natural defenses. Imposters are powerful, few weaknesses, many defenses. You want us to die, yes? Then I tell you how, so you feel safe in trusting me. You fear you can’t kill me. Now you know how, for certain,” Captain Mint said, toothy grins sprouting across his torso and helmet. “Do we have deal now, human Catnip?”

So this was it. He refused to believe that she was anything but human. That made the captain her biggest threat.

Catnip clenched her fists. Now she knew how to kill them for sure. But could she manage that against so many? Did she even want to? Polus might have their guns ready. She could call them, have them blow The Skeld out of the sky.

And if they didn’t? What then?

“I need to make a call first. Once I do, then you’ll have your answer,” Catnip said firmly.

“Radio,” Captain Mint guessed. “Go then. Make your call. I will wait.”

Catnip crawled out from under the table. There had been no movement outside of Admin in hours. Romaine and Iceberg clearly weren’t coming. She was likely safe now.

“Don’t touch my minis,” Catnip said warningly. “Or you’ll be reduced to dinner for them.”

Captain Mint laughed. Eggplant hissed, glaring at the crippled adult. The rest of the minis puffed and hissed behind him.

“I’ll be back,” Catnip said.

Then she left Admin, heading south at a quick pace. Praying to any higher being that would listen for Romaine and Iceberg to be long gone from Shields.


	12. Past 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Catnip makes a horrifying discovery that leads to a terrible revelation about a friend...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In case people are losing track of colors to characters and such (not me, nope, defs not), here be a fast rundown:
> 
> Catnip = purple  
> Captain Mint = dark green  
> Iceberg = cyan  
> Romaine = green  
> Wheat = yellow  
> Skullcap = dark blue  
> Ivy = pink  
> Bok = black  
> Leek = white  
> Chamomile = brown

“There! Now we know that we’re both human,” Wheat said triumphantly.

Catnip stepped off of the scanner. “But what about the others? I thought the captain was going to make scans mandatory. Why hasn’t he?”

“I don’t know,” Wheat admitted. “I keep asking, but he says there’s no point. That if we stay together, we’ll be safe. That he’ll know if anything is wrong.”

“Wheat, I know you don’t like this but…that’s suspicious,” Catnip pointed out.

Wheat shifted, hugging herself. “I know, I know. But I swear that he’s okay. He’s just under a lot of stress. I’ll try to get him to consider the scans again.”

Catnip patted her friend’s shoulder. “Take it easy, okay? I know that you’re as stressed as he is.”

Wheat sighed. “Catnip? I want to go home. To Polus. This was supposed to be a fast trip for us, but now…”

“I know.” Catnip hugged her. “We’ll get home. You and Mint can get married. Everything will be okay.”

“But what about the others? Skullcap killed someone. Chamomile, Ivy, Leek, and Bok are dead. What if we can never go home?” Wheat asked, trembling. “What if Mira leaves us here to die because of this?”

“They can’t. Mira can’t afford to,” Catnip said firmly.

That wasn’t true, though. Maybe once upon a time, the Mira company couldn’t afford to do that. Now Polus had a steady population on it. They could afford to abandon a ship of people. There were plenty of replacements.

But Catnip kept this to herself. Wheat had enough to worry about.

They parted ways in Cafeteria, Wheat fetching food. Catnip headed through the corridors, checking Electrical. The power had been flickering and several wire panels had been found damaged over the last few days. Whatever took Ivy was clearly trying to damage the ship, just like Romaine had suggested about the scanner.

Sabotage. This thing was intelligent enough to aim for critical systems. It roughly knew what it was doing.

Thankfully, so did the crew. They all were trained in repairs to these systems. Wires and getting shocked didn’t bother Catnip. Electrical was her main field of expertise.

Electrical was empty when she arrived. She eyed the vent cover at the far side of the room. The screws on it were missing, much like the one in Cameras had been. Like the rest of the ship now. Though replacement screws were found and used, within hours the vents would be loose again.

Was this thing eating the screws? Catnip tried not to think about it.

Keeping an eye on the vent, she popped the main power panel. Two of the switches were switched to OFF. She flipped them, relieved when the room lit up. Checking to make sure nothing else was wrong, she closed up the panel.

Then she saw the vent cover lift, blood oozing across the floor as a white glove emerged from it.

Catnip froze, staring. White brought to mind Leek. Leek wore a white suit…but Leek was dead. He died days ago and was incinerated by now, ashes ejected into space. He couldn’t be alive. They’d know if he was, right?

The hand withdrew into the vent, leaving blood behind. Thumping sounded from the vent. It was retreating from her.

It was a dumb idea, Catnip knew, but she had to investigate. Pulling the gun from her belt, she kicked aside the vent cover and crawled in. If Leek was alive, then they had another problem on their hands.

The vent was wide and sticky with blood. Catnip dropped the visor on her helmet, shielding her from contamination. The vent stunk of decay. She crawled forward on her belly, gun at the ready in case Leek—or whoever it was—turned around and came back.

The vent tunnel opened up into a room. A central airflow chamber. The fans leading into the ship’s depths spun overhead. Catnip pulled herself from the tunnel, only to recoil in horror.

It had definitely been Leek, at least his arm. The rest of him was tangled with the bodies of Bok and what she could only guess was Ivy. They were crushed together into a pile of gore and bone, like some kind of kill pile. The whole room stunk of death and rot.

How did they get here? All three were in the Incinerator room, last she knew. Romaine was supposed to incinerate them and eject the ashes. And Chamomile wasn’t here at all. Where was his body? Had he been incinerated before the imposters could get him?

Catnip froze. Romaine. He was in charge of incineration. How did he lose Bok and Leek? He had the bodies. She left them with him in Incinerator.

Unless he was…one of them…

Terror made her turn. She had to get out of here. If it was Romaine, then she needed to tell Wheat. They had to force him to scan. And if he refused…

If he refused, then what? Ejection? Imprisonment? What could they even do with something like an imposter? Could they be contained at all?

She scrambled through the tunnel, grabbing the edges of the vent to pull herself out once she reached Electrical. She threw off her helmet, gasping for air. Blood made her suit squeak as she freed herself, slumping to the floor.

She’d have to change suits, maybe shower. If she was seen like this, there would definitely be questions. The last thing she needed was to end up like Skullcap. Or worse.

“Catnip?”

Catnip’s head snapped up. Her heart dropped to the ground. Standing in the doorway of Electrical was Romaine.

Romaine. He might be an imposter. He was her friend. How didn’t she notice? Wasn’t Wheat saying that they’d definitely notice if friends were acting different? If that was true, then how couldn’t she have known that it was him?

“Is that…blood? And the vent… You came out of it!” he said, rearing back. “Are you…?”

“Romaine, no! It’s not what it looks like!” Catnip said, getting to her feet. “I saw—”

“You’re an imposter!” Romaine spun, running from the room.

“Romaine, no! Wait!”

She ran from Electrical, trying to chase him. Romaine was bigger and faster, easily outrunning her. She realized where he was going just as she exited Storage. The Emergency Meeting button in Cafeteria. He’d summon the crew.

She reached Cafeteria just as he slammed his hand on the button. It was too late to explain.


	13. Present 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A choice is made, but is it the right one?

Shields were empty when Catnip arrived. Romaine and Iceberg were gone to who knows where. Catnip breathed a sigh of relief, carrying on to Communications. The vent was empty of occupants, of listening ears and watching eyes.

She was alone. Safe.

The radio was still intact. She fiddled with the dial briefly before the static finally cleared. She picked up the receiver, pressing the button.

“Polus, this is The Skeld. Do you copy?” she asked.

It took a minute before someone answered.

“Polus here. Catnip? Is that you? Are you okay?”

“I’m fine. My situation might’ve gotten worse here. They know I’m here and I was nearly discovered,” Catnip explained. “I got away, though.”

Should she tell them about Captain Mint’s plan? She wasn’t sure.

“How’s the status of your guns? Did you get the reactor working?” she asked instead.

“We did get reactor going, but then it died again. We think there might be an imposter sabotaging us here.”

“No!” Catnip cried. “I need you to shoot us down. They’re no longer planning to kill me if they catch me. They want me to take them to Polus.”

“We need you to hang in there. We can get to you somehow.”

“No, I need this ship destroyed,” Catnip argued.

“I’m sorry but there’s nothing we can do, Catnip.”

Catnip slammed a fist onto the counter. So that was it. Polus couldn’t help her, especially not if they had another imposter running around. That left the ship’s destruction up to her.

“Understood,” she muttered. “Good luck with your imposter problem. I’ll work to destroy this ship myself.”

“You don’t have to do that! Just hunker down and wait. You’ve lasted so long, Catnip!”

“And I’m tired of it,” Catnip said coldly. “I’m done waiting. If you see The Skeld moving your way, destroy it. I don’t care how. I’m ending this here.”

“Catnip, please! Just listen! We ca—”

Catnip twisted the dial, the conversation dissolving to static. Her heart was in her boots with grief. She stayed there at the counter for a few minutes before leaving Communications.

The walk back to Admin seemed to take forever. The captain must’ve smelled her failure, because he had multiple grins stretched across his body when she arrived.

“Well? What did your friends say?” he prompted.

Catnip glared at him. “How do you plan to get rid of Romaine and Iceberg?”

His grins only grew. “I knew you’d come around.”


	14. Present 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The plan begins, with frightening results. Catnip gets curious about her new ally.

“You want to eat the others?” Catnip asked.

“The lesser ones, yes,” Captain Mint said, pausing his walk to lean against the wall. “They will help your minis mature. We’ll need the numbers on our side before we do anything else.”

They had left Admin behind, heading downstairs into the cells. The imposters seemed less interested in entering these dark spaces, which Catnip found funny. Such a place screamed “ambush zone” to her.

Apparently the imposters saw it differently. No prey went in the cells, so it was pointless to hide there.

It was weird to see a whole section of the ship untouched by its invaders. Aside from the rare splash of blood, the only place that signaled imposter activity was the cell that once housed Skullcap.

Poor Skullcap. Catnip forever regretted what happened to him.

“We’ll use this place as our base of operation,” Captain Mint decided. “They are unlikely to come down here in search of us. And if they do, we have enough space to fight back.”

Eggplant and the minis swarmed around the area, licking at old dried blood. They were getting hungry again. Catnip could tell by their sudden agitation.

“Okay, so how many would you call lesser?” Catnip asked.

“Around now, the ship has several hundred imposters on it,” Captain Mint said. “Most occupy the vents. We’ll aim for the ones lazing in the open. They’ll be weak, starving, perhaps injured from others. Easy prey for your minis. We’ll aim higher once they are grown.”

“And how long do you think this will take? Romaine and Iceberg will notice that something is going on eventually,” Catnip said. “Most of you guys hide…but they’ll eventually notice the numbers going down.”

“If you keep collecting your minis, the numbers will tip in our favor. We can send some as spies. They won’t notice,” Captain Mint said confidently.

“And if they do?” Catnip challenged.

“We’ll have numbers,” he replied evasively. “One step at a time. Don’t jump the gun.”

“A gun would be nicer to deal with,” Catnip replied.

Captain Mint settled against a wall, sliding to sit on the floor. The tourniquet was holding well, though the bandages were filthy again. Catnip wondered if the injury would ever heal.

“Your minis are hungry. Go feed them,” he prompted. “I’ll wait here.”

“Funny how the human is doing all the legwork here,” Catnip muttered.

If Captain Mint heard her, he didn’t say anything.

Catnip headed for the stairs again. The minis scurried after her, Eggplant in the lead. Once they were upstairs again, a hush fell over the tiny crowd. Catnip guided them, looking for a quick meal for her entourage.

She nearly tripped over the imposter. He was just lying across the hall, still as a statue. She might’ve thought he was dead if not for the eyes that sprouted along his back, seeking out whatever touched him.

She didn’t know if he was hurt or dying, but something must’ve been wrong. And whatever it was, it triggered a frenzy in the minis.

The imposter snarled, trying to surge to his feet. It didn’t help. The minis were all over him, tearing at his red suit skin, chewing at his limbs. It was like a multicolored carpet of death. Catnip quickly retreated, horrified. The imposter’s shrieks died off after a few minutes, his mass shrinking under the pile.

Did anyone hear his cries? Were others coming? Catnip checked both sides of the hall around her. Nobody appeared. Nobody cared. Just another day on The Skeld.

One less mouth to feed.

The minis withdrew, some of them noticeably bigger than before. Eggplant slurped at his chest, almost hip height on Catnip now. Before, most of them barely reached mid-knee. They were growing.

Holly and Mistletoe fought over scraps, hissing when a few others drew near. Catnip wondered if the twins held any memory of Iceberg. Did they care for him? Would they hesitate if they had to fight him? Would they attack as viciously as Eggplant had?

Eggplant growled, grabbing at their attention. He was the biggest of the bunch now. The other minis hissed and squeaked, finishing off the body until only gnawed bones remained. Then they grouped back up, swarming around Catnip as if nothing unusual had happened.

Eggplant was carrying the remains of the poor imposter’s leg in his teeth. He nudged Catnip’s hip with it. She flinched away. She had a rough idea of what he was doing.

“No thanks, Eggplant. You can have it. I ate already,” she said.

Eggplant gave a muffled grunt. Then he crunched down on the femur. A few smaller minis darted in, tearing at loose flesh and bone that dropped from his mouth. Eggplant let them, unconcerned with the fate of his scraps.

Catnip guided them back to the cells, freezing briefly when she saw a hint of green down a hall. Romaine? No, thank goodness, just another green imposter. No ram horns on that one. Phew.

Captain Mint greeted them as they entered the cells. “They are growing. Good.”

“They grow fast. They have to,” Catnip said, settling down several feet away from the captain. “No sign of Romaine or Iceberg. I’m not sure if that’s good or bad.”

“Treat it as good,” Captain Mint suggested. “They will be dealt with eventually.”

Catnip nodded. She watched the minis settle in nearby, clearly tired from their feeding frenzy. Eggplant squirmed away from them, slinking over to her. He sat by her, motionless. For a moment, she might’ve imagined that he wasn’t an imposter at all.

Curiosity nipped at her.

“Do you remember anything that the captain did? Is that a thing?” she asked.

“I only copy what I see and communicate using what I heard,” Captain Mint replied. “If you are asking for details about his past, I do not know them. I know only what I saw or overheard. He was tough to copy. I’m surprised that you never noticed that he was not himself. His mate seemed to pick up on it from the start, but she was blindly loyal and overlooked my mistakes.”

“She trusted you. She believed you,” Catnip said.

“Until I made that error,” Captain Mint agreed. “I did not expect the knife. I’m grateful that she didn’t do lethal damage, but it still hurt. And my voice…”

“Yeah, she screwed you there, huh? Can’t pass as him anymore with your voice all gurgly,” Catnip said, snickering.

“You are amused by my injuries.”

“I can’t say you didn’t deserve it. What you did was horrible,” Catnip replied. “I wish I could’ve done the same.”

“Yet you are alive and she is not,” Captain Mint said.

Catnip frowned. “She should be. You should’ve been ejected that day, not her.”

Captain Mint didn’t respond. Catnip couldn’t bring herself to call that a victory.


	15. Past 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Captain Mint and Romaine will remember this...

The emergency button was a once-per-crewmate use device that came standard issue with the Polus colony’s ships. It was usually for system emergencies and was locked against use otherwise except for the captain, but the medic had made it open use when it was clear that there were imposters on board.

The crew came quickly at its screaming alarm. Catnip could feel eyes on her, on the blood dripping from her purple suit. She knew that judgment was already being passed.

“I saw Catnip exiting a vent in Electrical, covered in blood,” Romaine explained. “She has to be an imposter. There is no reason to enter the vents unless she was one.”

“Is this true, Catnip?” Captain Mint asked.

“Yes, I was in the vents. Let me explain, please,” Catnip begged. “I was in Electrical fixing the power. Some of the switches were flipped. When I turned the power on, I saw Bok’s hand sticking out of the vent.”

“Bok? But he’s dead,” Iceberg said. “He was incinerated.”

“I thought so too,” Catnip said. “The hand went back into the vent. Yes, I should’ve called for backup or something, but I wanted to be sure I was seeing what I saw. I went into the vent until I reached a central airflow chamber.”

“That’s rather deep into the system. And you never ran into an imposter?” Captain Mint asked.

“I don’t know where it went, but I did find Bok. And Leek and Ivy. Their bodies were all piled up and torn apart in there. It was awful,” Catnip explained.

“Weren’t the three of them incinerated?” Wheat asked. “Romaine, you were in charge of that.”

“I incinerated them along with Chamomile,” Romaine said. “You saw me eject the ashes.”

“I saw you eject ashes, but was it all of them?” Wheat asked pointedly.

“Why would I lie?” Romaine asked. “I’m not the one that was in the vents. I’m not the one covered in blood.”

“Romaine brings up good points. Catnip, you have no alibi,” Captain Mint said. “And you are covered in evidence that doesn’t look good for you.”

“She has to be an imposter!” Romaine exclaimed.

“If the bodies are in a central airflow chamber, then we can send a drone to verify it,” Wheat suggested.

“I incinerated Leek and Bok. If there is a body, then it’s Ivy’s. And doesn’t Catnip knowing exactly where it is look suspicious?” Romaine asked. “This is clearly a trap. Only one person can squeeze into the vents at a time.”

“Catnip is innocent,” Wheat said. “I know because we both scanned this morning. You can check the scanner logs.”

“She could’ve changed since then,” Captain Mint pointed out.

“Then we can go to the scanner right now. We can all scan, like we should’ve been doing when Ivy was taken,” Wheat declared. “Catnip is innocent.”

“We have a chance to get rid of an imposter now. The longer we take to verify everyone, the quicker they can take us out,” Captain Mint said. “Wheat, I know you mean well, but you need to trust me.”

“No, you need to trust me!” Wheat insisted.

“It’s Catnip, sir,” Romaine said, slamming his hand on the VOTE button. Then he pressed a purple button with Catnip’s name on it.

“Mint!” Wheat cried.

“I’m sorry, dear.” Captain Mint pressed the purple button.

Wheat instantly slammed her hand on the SKIP button.

“Wheat!” the captain barked.

“I have evidence of Catnip’s innocence. Innocence that can be backed up by the ship’s systems and scanner logs. Evidence that can’t be disproven,” Wheat said. “Where’s yours of her guilt? Why don’t you believe me?”

Catnip hit SKIP as well. “I know it sounds fishy, but it’s true. We both scanned.”

Iceberg wrung his hands. Then he hit SKIP. “I’m willing to check the scanner logs. We can’t afford to make a mistake like this, captain. There are only six of us left.”

“Iceberg, listen! I saw her!” Romaine shouted.

“Let’s look at the scan logs. Right now,” Wheat said, glaring at the captain. “I want an apology when you see that I’m right.”

Catnip followed Iceberg and Wheat to Medical to check the scanner. The logs were easy to pull up. Just as Wheat had said, the logs recorded their morning scans. Catnip even scanned again to prove herself innocent.

“See?” Wheat prompted. “I was right. Why wouldn’t you even consider what I was saying, Mint?”

“Romaine put forth a better argument,” the captain said.

“He made wild speculations based on what he saw! I had proof!” Wheat argued. “And you were going to throw an innocent person out of the airlock over it! What’s the matter with you?”

“I’m sorry,” the captain said, helmet lowered. “You are right. I made a mistake. Romaine, apologize.”

“No, I don’t care about an apology,” Wheat interrupted. “Romaine, scan. Now. If you did incinerate Bok and Leek, then you’ll show up as human…but if their bodies are in the vents with Ivy…”

“This is ridiculous. You saw me eject them,” Romaine argued.

“Scan, Romaine!” Wheat shouted.

“We don’t need to get into a fight,” Captain Mint said, getting between them. “Wheat, your point was made. Romaine and I made mistakes.”

“Mint, listen to yourself!” Wheat yelled. “Why are you defending him? Make him scan. We should all scan. We’re all right here.”

“I don’t see why we shouldn’t. It will help at this point, sir,” Iceberg said.

“We should,” Catnip agreed. “Skullcap was already verified. So was I. That leaves you four, and I trust Wheat.”

“I’ll scan,” Iceberg said, stepping onto the scanner. “We may as well get this over with. Our lives are on the line and I have two kids to care for.”

The power flickered once. Twice. Then the whole ship went pitch black.


	16. Present 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Captain Mint is having a bad time...

The next few days seemed to be repeats of each other. Wake up, head out with the minis to take down solo imposters hanging out in the open, return to the cells. Rinse and repeat. If anyone noticed what was happening, word wasn’t spreading around about it.

Catnip was more nervous that she hadn’t seen Romaine or Iceberg.

Iceberg was usually in Cafeteria, lounging with his fellows. Since his hand was severed, he seemed to disappear. Romaine usually roamed openly in search of food. Now he was nowhere to be seen.

Catnip wasn’t sure if this was good or bad. At least if she saw them, she could gauge what they were up to. With them gone like this, she had no idea what they could be doing.

Captain Mint didn’t move much. He almost seemed tired and weaker than usual. It made Catnip wary but for an entirely different reason. The dark green imposter at least had a plan about how to get rid of his opponents. If he went down, that left her stuck.

Well, not entirely stuck. At least she had the minis.

With all the feasting, the older minis had matured into adults. During their hunts, Catnip had found several more minis tucked away in corners and nooks and crannies. It took little to coax them out and to get them to follow her. Eggplant and the older minis, unlike their older counterparts, seemed uninterested in the newcomers.

Catnip almost imagined this as like one of the games she used to play on Polus as a child. Something about catching a bunch of monsters and training them to battle other monsters for you. It was funny to imagine.

Another day came to a close and she guided Eggplant and the others down into the cells. Captain Mint had moved one cell block over from where he’d been this morning. The minis hunkered down to rest, minus Eggplant. The black mini—adult imposter now—followed Catnip as she went to check on the other.

Catnip tried not to freeze when she entered the cell. She knew this cell. It was the one that Skullcap had been locked in. Old blood had dried and stained the floor. Claw marks tore across the metal walls. She tried very hard not to imagine what happened in there during those few days…

“You okay?” she asked, redirecting her thoughts.

Captain Mint tilted his helmet, looking at her. “I’m fine. Just resting.”

“You sure? You seem…” She resisted the word ‘weak’. Or ‘helpless’. Or ‘pathetic’. “Tired. How’s the tourniquet?”

“Tight. Bandages tug on wound,” he grumbled.

Catnip fetched the first aid kit, settling down by him. She undid the tourniquet and peeled away the wrappings. The wound was sealing but now there was black gunk oozing from it. The only thing she could think of was infection. Some kind of imposter infection.

“It’s not looking good. I did everything right. Why is it oozing?” she muttered.

She hesitantly reached out to touch the captain’s helmet. He hissed but did not pull back. He felt hot, feverish. Catnip frowned.

“You have a fever,” she said. “You should rest. I’ll get you water.”

“I’ll be fine,” he growled.

“You’ve gone downhill since we got down here. Maybe the cells are a bad idea for you?” Catnip suggested. “Maybe that’s why nobody comes down here. It’s bad for you guys somehow.”

“Not safe up top,” Captain Mint croaked. “Just need rest. I’ll be fine.”

“You better be. I can’t get rid of those two without you,” Catnip said firmly, rewrapping his stump.

To be honest, she probably could now. Eggplant and the others were grown, able to actively hunt and swarm other imposters. When more of them matured, they might be able to take on Iceberg or Romaine.

Maybe.

Once the tourniquet was reapplied, Catnip forced him to lie down. Captain Mint hissed but did not fight her. He was oddly compliant. She wondered idly if it was because Eggplant was hovering at her back. The minis hadn’t hesitated to display their dislike of the adult from the start.

Catnip grabbed one of the water bottles that she had gotten from Storage. She’d need to make another trip there soon. She was running low on food for herself and she wasn’t desperate enough to eat imposter meat.

“Open up,” Catnip said. “Try not to choke either.”

She watched as a toothy mouth spread across his chest. She uncapped the bottle and dumped it in. Captain Mint’s chest convulsed briefly as he swallowed. She was getting used to the weird reactions and movements of his alien body. Once the bottle was empty, she tossed it aside. It was devoured with a sharp crunch by Eggplant.

“I told you not to eat those, Eggplant,” Catnip scolded. “I can reuse them.”

Eggplant gave a grunt, tongue snaking from his waist in a parody of licking his lips. He showed no signs of spitting up the bottle.

“Try to stay down,” Catnip said, turning her attention back to Captain Mint. “I don’t know if this is like human fevers, but rest and hydration should help. I’ll bring you food after while.”

Captain Mint didn’t respond. He watched Catnip get up and leave, her grown mini tailing her like a loyal pet. Once she was gone, he tensed and coughed harshly. Mouths erupted across his body, spitting black ooze.

“Not…yet!” he hissed. “Have to…make it…! Can’t…die here!”

He continued that way for several minutes before his body finally relaxed and allowed him to sleep. Catnip would be back in a few hours with meat, unaware that the process of his suffering would begin again.


	17. Present 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A trip to Medical for supplies goes south fast...

The black ooze only seemed to get worse. Catnip was changing the captain’s bandages multiple times a day. Her worry escalated into fear. Fear made people irrational and stupid.

Captain Mint needed medicine. Something to help. She didn’t know if human medicine would work, but imposters ate people and had humanoid forms. It was worth a try.

She hadn’t entered Medical since her last stand against the imposters before the crew was destroyed. When The Skeld lost its last few human passengers. When she finally found out Iceberg for what he was.

It was dark here. The imposters had been playing with Electrical again. Every step sounded like a bomb in Catnip’s ears. Her anxiety only intensified because, perhaps foolishly, she had left the minis behind to guard Captain Mint.

She had to quit calling them minis. Half of them were adults now. Full-blown killing machines. Imposters.

Imposters that weren’t hurting or eating her. Especially Eggplant, loyal Eggplant.

Hopefully they weren’t eating the captain. That would make this whole trip for nothing.

Medical’s emergency lights flickered, lighting up the goriest place on The Skeld. The scanner sat in the corner, drenched in red. She aimed for the cupboards and drawers in the back. Surely some medicine had survived. The imposters didn’t touch the first aid kits, after all.

She ignored the closet where she knew Iceberg’s body lay. Her Iceberg, their medical officer. The human. The father. The kind man who never could’ve imagined this happening to him and his children.

She flinched at the squeak of the first cupboard. Countless bottles lay there. She dug through them, shoving back most of them. Then she moved to the next cupboard. It took a bit to find names that she recognized.

Painkillers. Fever reducers. Vitamins.

She gathered these bottles up, shoving them into her bag. She prayed that these worked. If they didn’t, she didn’t have the foggiest idea of how to help Captain Mint get better.

Worst case scenario, she might have to…

She stiffened up when a glass bottle shattered on the ground. She spun. Glass, freshly broken, sparkled on the floor near Medical’s door. Her eyes darted to every dark corner, hunting for shapes that didn’t belong.

“Catnip.”

Her heart froze. The shadows parted around a familiar cyan suit.

“There you are. I wondered how long it would take you to come here. And alone too.” Iceberg’s visor split into a glassy grin. “Perfect.”

Catnip slowly stood, turning to face him. She didn’t want her back to him. Iceberg slowly approached, grin only growing. She noted right away that his missing hand was wrapped.

There was no black ooze on his wound.

“Looking for something?” Iceberg asked.

“No,” Catnip said. “Why are you here?”

“Waiting for you. You kept me here for a long time.”

“I didn’t do anything. You chose to wait here,” Catnip said, slowly inching along the wall. “If you don’t mind, I have things to do.”

“Like taking care of our poor captain?”

Catnip was glad that he couldn’t see her face. She glared, teeth grit. Iceberg spread his arms out, blocking her in as he advanced. Catnip was cornered.

“How is his arm? Rotting?” he asked. “You were checking my hand, weren’t you? Looking for it.”

Catnip tensed. He stopped a few steps from her. She could run by him, but that was risky. If he got her bag, it was over. If he got her, it was over. She couldn’t afford to be caught.

“Answer,” Iceberg growled.

“He has black stuff oozing from it,” Catnip replied. “Is that what you mean by rot?”

Iceberg chuckled, glass teeth clicking. “Yes.”

“How do I fix it?”

“You want to fix it? You want to help him? After everything he did to you, to us?” Iceberg’s helmet tilted. “Ah, you were grabbing medicine. Don’t bother. Your human medication will only make him ill.”

Well, that put a wrench in her ideas. She decided to hold onto the bag anyway. Maybe he was lying. Or she could use the meds on herself later.

“Did your hand rot?” Catnip asked.

“At first,” Iceberg said. “It’s not hard to cure. It can be lethal if left alone long enough.”

“How do I fix it?”

“Why should I tell you?”

Catnip glared at him. Iceberg chuckled. Neither of them moved.

“What do you want for it?” Catnip asked coldly.

“What makes you think you can give me what I want?” Iceberg asked.

“We won’t know until you tell me,” Catnip replied. “And clearly you want something.”

Iceberg chuckled. “All right. I want what we all want. The wires to the wheel. Fix them.”

“I don’t know how,” Catnip said. “I’m not the human that you want. I don’t know why you keep insisting that I am.”

“Your helmet lifted back then, at Shields. I felt it,” Iceberg said. He smirked. “Fine, play hard to get. I’m not ready for our game to end, though.”

“Hmm?”

Iceberg lowered his arms. “Human meat. That clears up the rot. Our bodies need a constant intake of prey. Imposter flesh doesn’t do anything but fill our stomachs. Human meat is what we need. Without it, our poor captain will perish from rot.”

“Haven’t you eaten all of the humans? Or are you asking me to hunt down the last surviving one?” Catnip asked.

“Use your head, Catnip,” Iceberg said, tapping his helmet. “When you were on trial, it was because of a certain incident.”

Catnip barely bit back a response. He was trying to bait her, force her to admit that she was human. As an imposter, she wouldn’t know that those events had occurred because they were before she supposedly died.

“Use that,” Iceberg prompted, tossing a knife lightly from his belt. “You do not have the claws and teeth that we do. I have no need for flimsy human tools.”

Catnip hesitated. If she grabbed the knife, was that an admission? Would he know for certain that she was human? So far, he already was behaving like he did.

She swallowed her pride and snatched the knife, aiming it at him. Iceberg stepped aside, chuckling. He was amused but entirely unthreatened by the display. He made no move to advance on her as she hurried past him.

“Run home, little Catnip. Save your friends’ murderer. When you are done, I know you’ll come back to me,” Iceberg said. “After all, you trusted me for so long. Why would that change?”

“People change,” Catnip said coldly. “You sure did.”

“Did I?” Iceberg asked, curious. “Or did you?”

Catnip didn’t respond. She wasn’t sure that she even could. Once she was sure that he wasn’t going to chase her, she ran from Medical. The lack of footsteps pounding after her signaled that she was home free.

But was she really? Or was she just running into another trap?


	18. Present 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Catnip returns to the vents and a familiar foe isn't far behind...

Captain Mint gagged, throwing up the plethora of pills and tablets that he had eaten. Black ooze gushed between his teeth from several mouths. He groaned, nearly falling helmet-first into the mess if Catnip hadn’t dragged him backward and away from it.

It hadn’t worked. Iceberg was right. All the meds had done was make the captain horribly ill.

“I’m sorry,” she said automatically.

“N-not your f-fault,” Captain Mint groaned, curling up on the ground. “Won’t d-die here. Will b-beat this fever.”

“If I found you human meat, would it help?” Catnip dared to ask.

Captain Mint wheezed, black bubbles popping between a few abdominal teeth. “None left. All eaten.”

Did she dare? Would the captain know how she knew? What if Iceberg had been lying?

“I might know where some is,” Catnip said. “There might be some in the vents, in that central airflow chamber. If not, maybe I can scavenge in Medical.”

“You’ll be c-cornered in v-vents,” Captain Mint hissed.

“Getting you better is all that matters, right?” Catnip asked. “I’ll bring the minis with me. They can go in first.”

She didn’t want to go into the vents. She didn’t want to go back to Medical. But Captain Mint needed help and if Iceberg was right, then the only human bodies that she knew of was in those two spots.

She wished that Skullcap was still down here. That was an awful wish, but she couldn’t help but want it.

Captain Mint coughed, chest heaving. The bandages were drenched black again. Changing them was almost pointless. At least it wasn’t openly bleeding anymore, so the tourniquet could be removed.

“Y-you’ll die,” he hissed.

“You will if I don’t at least try,” Catnip said, getting to her feet. “Eggplant, Mistletoe, Holly, Daffodil, let’s go.”

The four imposters darted over, ready to go. Eggplant loomed over her easily. Mistletoe and Holly were around her height, identical-looking except for the ornaments on their helmets. Daffodil in her bright red spacesuit was just a bit shorter than her and the twins.

All equally eager. All equally dangerous.

“The rest of you, stay here and keep watch,” Catnip instructed.

A chorus of growls, hisses, and grunts sounded from the rest of the pack. Though they disliked the captain, none had ever made a move to eat him. Catnip felt a bit safer leaving him alone with them now.

“We’ll be back soon, Mint,” she said. “Try to hold on. Rest.”

Captain Mint growled. If he had anything positive to say, he didn’t say it. Catnip wasn’t shocked, to be honest.

Catnip led the way upstairs, the four imposters swarming close. Eggplant bared multiple mouths full of sharp teeth, flashing them around every corner and at every shadow. Holly and Mistletoe picking up scraps along the way, bickering over them. Daffodil was silent, more focused on keeping up with the group.

Electrical soon loomed ahead. Catnip heard the vent rattle briefly. If anyone was in there, they cleared out fast when Eggplant shoved his head into the open tunnel, snarling at the darkness.

“Easy, Eggplant. Don’t start fights,” Catnip insisted, patting the back of his black suit. “We go in, see if the bodies are there, and get back out.”

Eggplant grunted before shoving the rest of his big body into the ventilation shaft. For a moment, Catnip was afraid that he would get stuck. Then he was gone, growling.

“Two of you, then me, then the other two,” Catnip suggested.

Holly scurried forward, crawling into the vent after Eggplant. Catnip followed her in, glancing back to see Mistletoe at her boots. That would leave little Daffodil at the end of the line. Catnip hoped that she would be okay back there.

It was slow going. Eggplant kept growling, thumping ahead of them. Catnip wondered if he was driving off other imposters up ahead. She couldn’t see past Holly’s shoulders.

Eventually Catnip watched Holly crawl out and get to her feet. Eggplant held out a hand to help pull Catnip into the central airflow chamber. Mistletoe crawled out after her, snapping a few sets of teeth at her sister. Daffodil peered out of the tunnel, as if afraid.

The chamber was full of dozing imposters. No doubt that was a mouthwatering sight to the four. Catnip moved ahead, searching. Eggplant growled, following her. The other three watched from the tunnel entrance.

No sign of Bok’s arm. That wasn’t shocking.

There was a gross pile of what she could only guess was old meat at the center. She remembered when she could identify the bodies…but were these them? Catnip bit her lip as she dug her gloves into the slimy mass, hoping to spot hints of their suits.

No matter how much she dug, she couldn’t find any hints of white, black, or pink that wasn’t some form of mold. Now what? Did she bag up some of this and pray there was human flesh in there somewhere?

Catnip suddenly had an idea. The scanner! Maybe it could identify the meat. And if it couldn’t, then she at least knew there was human meat in Medical.

But that meant potentially running into Iceberg again.

A loud banging made her jump. Mistletoe and Holly darted toward them, shrieking. The sleeping imposters began to scatter in a frenzy. Eggplant spun, puffing up. Toothy mouths and spiky flesh erupted from his warping suit.

“Where’s Daffodil?” Catnip asked, realizing one of the four was missing.

The vent tunnel suddenly darkened. A large form emerged from it, a crown of ram horns decorating their lime green helmet. Catnip’s heart dropped into her boots for the second time that day.

“Catnip,” Romaine hissed. “Found you.”


	19. Past 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The imposters finally make their move on the survivors...

“What happened?” Wheat cried.

“The power went out,” Iceberg replied. “But why?”

Catnip froze. It was so dark. She couldn’t even see her own hand in front of her face. Her arms shot out instantly, searching for anyone.

“Catnip?”

“I’m right here,” she said, grabbing a glove. “Wheat?”

“Catnip!” Wheat latched onto her friend. “Iceberg?”

“Give me a second. I know I have a pen light,” the medical officer said.

“Stay together,” Captain Mint instructed. “We can’t afford to panic now. If this is the imposters, then they’re trying to make us scatter.”

A small beam of light broke the darkness. Catnip watched Iceberg step off the offline scanner. She waved a hand into the beam to get his attention.

“Over here, Ice—”

The teeth were the first thing she saw, looming from the dark to her left. Catnip screamed, flinging herself and Wheat out of the way. The imposter tripped over them, slamming into the cupboards. Wheat dragged her to her feet, bolting for the scanner.

“Go go go!” Catnip shouted, seizing Iceberg’s hand.

“Mint! Where are you? Mint!” Wheat screamed, looking around frantically.

“Go! Run!” the captain shouted. “I’ll handle him! Get out!”

“We have to go,” Iceberg said, dragging them both to the exit. “What the…? The doors! They’re closed!”

“What?!” Catnip forced herself ahead of him, slamming a fist against metal. “What the hell? First the power, now the doors? What else can they mess with?”

“Look out!” Wheat screamed.

Catnip dove to the side, shoving Iceberg under her. The imposter rammed into the door and straight through them, the metal buckling and breaking. Catnip looked up to see dark green boots run past her. A gun was going off.

“Run! Run run run!” Wheat shrieked, seizing her hand.

“Go! Get out!” the captain shouted, shooting down the hall toward Cafeteria.

Wheat was out the doors first, dragging Catnip after her. Catnip clung to Iceberg’s arm, too afraid of losing him to let go. The trio bolted the other way, tearing toward the generators and then down to Reactor and Cameras. The crashed into everything from walls to the generator itself on their way, fumbling desperately through the darkness.

“Cameras! We can lock the doors!” Iceberg insisted.

“There’s a vent!” Catnip argued.

“There are vents everywhere!” Iceberg shouted.

“Stop fighting!” Wheat yelled, throwing both of them through the open door into what she prayed was Cameras. “Find the vent! Get something over it!”

Catnip felt around until she found a filing cabinet. “Here! Help me tip it!”

Iceberg was at her side, ramming his shoulder against it. Together the two of them dropped the cabinet onto its side right over the vent. Wheat collapsed against the camera console, the screens black behind her. She was crying.

The lights flickered, popping back on.

“What just happened back there? How did it find us?” Wheat sobbed. “Oh god, Mint! We left Mint there!”

“The captain’s armed. He’ll be okay,” Iceberg said gently. “Seems the power is back on. Perhaps these imposters didn’t want us scanning.”

“Mint!” Wheat wailed. “Oh god!”

“Where’s Romaine?” Catnip asked. “He’s the only one that I didn’t see.”

Nobody said a word. The dread bubbled up again.

“I think it’s obvious,” Iceberg finally said. “Romaine is one of them. He took advantage of the power going out to try and kill us.”

“We have to find Mint,” Wheat croaked.

“There are four of us. We can eject Romaine if we can get him in the airlock,” Iceberg continued, as if he hadn’t heard Wheat. “Then we…” He paused. “Oh no.”

“What?” Catnip asked.

“What now?” Wheat choked, visor flipped up to rub at her eyes.

“Skullcap. We’ve entirely forgotten him. He’s in the cells,” Iceberg said. “If we can get him, maybe we can overpower Romaine outright.”

“And Mint,” Catnip said.

“What?” Wheat said, looking at her friend. “What do you mean by that?”

“Think about it,” Catnip said firmly. “The captain sided with Romaine, even when you had evidence that he was wrong. He hasn’t made scans mandatory even though we know that imposters are on board. Isn’t that fishy?”

“He’s stressed,” Wheat insisted. “He can’t… He isn’t…”

“It would make sense,” Iceberg admitted.

“Mint shot at that thing! Why would he do that if he was one of them?” Wheat argued.

“Saving his own butt,” Iceberg said simply. “If Romaine had managed to kill Catnip, it’d be two against two, with Skullcap imprisoned. Since he failed, it was three against two. The odds weren’t in his favor.”

“No! He wouldn’t! He made a mistake, he had to!” Wheat insisted.

Catnip withdrew from the arguing pair. Her heart felt like stone. Romaine was an imposter and now their own captain might be too. Romaine, she had suspected…but never the captain.

“Skullcap,” she suddenly said. “Guys, wait! Skullcap!”

“Yes? What about him?” Iceberg asked.

“The captain is the only one that was checking on him since we locked him up,” Catnip explained. “If Mint is one of them, is Skullcap even down there anymore?”

Iceberg stared. “Oh no.”

“We have to check. If he isn’t, then we know for sure if Mint is one of them,” Catnip said.

“We could be cornered down there!” Wheat protested. “We at least need to arm ourselves.”

“I have a gun. So do you, Wheat. We’re armed enough,” Catnip said. “If Skullcap is alive, we’re going to need him. We have to check.”

“But what about Mint?” Wheat squeaked. “What if he isn’t one of them? We’re really going to leave him out there alone to die?”

“Mint can handle himself,” Catnip said, checking how many bullets she had in her gun. “Right now, Skullcap can’t.”

Iceberg sighed. “Catnip is right. If Skullcap is still alive, we can’t leave him. He’s defenseless down there. Mint can get anywhere on the ship. Skullcap has a tiny cell block and is handcuffed.”

Wheat sniffled. “But…”

“Look, if Mint isn’t one of them, we’ll be right back up to get him too,” Catnip said gently. “Our captain is strong. If he’s still with us, trust him to survive until we’re back.”

Wheat flipped down her visor. She slowly stood up from the console. “Okay… Let’s do it. Mint can… He’ll be okay. He has to be.”

“Mint will be fine,” Iceberg said, resting a hand on her shoulder. “We need to go quickly. Romaine might know where we’ll go since he messed up.”

“Right,” Catnip agreed.

After gathering their wits and checking their weapons, the trio left Cameras and headed for the stairs to the cells. Catnip tried not to think of what they might find down there.


	20. Present 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Romaine doesn't mind playing dirty...

Catnip wanted to throw up. Eggplant snarled, body warping in a vicious display. The twins cowered behind him, puffing and hissing.

Daffodil’s body dangled from Romaine’s chest, upper half gone behind rows of teeth. It was clear that the smaller imposter was dead. He crunched down hard, letting her lower half drop to spill blood on the ground.

Catnip spotted the dying pulsations of a hefty organ in Daffodil’s gut, cut neatly in two. Her core, just like Mint had shown her. Daffodil was definitely dead.

“Catnip,” Romaine hissed again, stepping fully into the chamber.

“Hello, Romaine,” Catnip greeted coldly.

“Isn’t this familiar?” Romaine tilted his helmet. “Led you here before. Got away then, though.”

“I don’t know what you mean,” Catnip replied.

“Don’t lie,” Romaine growled, chest parting into a toothy mouth. “You remember! You were here! You followed me that day! The day you should’ve died!”

Catnip bit down any response. He was baiting her, but at least now she knew for sure. He had led her into a trap back then. He had waved Bok’s arm in her face from the vent. All to try and get her ejected, to thin the numbers.

“Now we’re here again,” Romaine hissed.

“I’m just getting food. I’ll leave, if that’s what you want,” Catnip said, stepping away from the meat pile.

She’d have to leave it behind. There was no time to bag any up and Romaine would find her doing that suspicious. Why bag it when she could just eat it? She couldn’t afford to have him targeting her any more than he already was.

“Then eat,” Romaine prompted.

“I did,” Catnip said.

“Eat more! Then I’ll go,” Romaine insisted.

Eggplant growled, stepping forward. He put his big bulk between her and the threat. Romaine tipped his helmet slightly, visor flashing red again.

“You grew. The one who took Iceberg’s hand,” Romaine guessed. “Can’t talk. No one to teach you. Hah!”

“We’re leaving,” Catnip said firmly.

Romaine was blocking the vent back to Electrical. Catnip could see two other vents behind her. Hopefully they’d let them out somewhere close to the cells. She backed up toward the open tunnels, Holly and Mistletoe scurrying with her.

“Why run? Just want to make sure you eat enough,” Romaine said, advancing on them. “Worried for you. Never see you eat.”

Catnip knew taunts when she heard them. “Eggplant, we’re leaving.”

“You are not!” Romaine barked.

Eggplant roared, throwing himself at Romaine. The pair hit the metal floor, wrestling and biting. Holly shrieked, prompting Mistletoe to fling herself on the fighting duo as well.

“No, stop! Get away from him!” Catnip shouted.

Romaine managed to pry Eggplant’s snapping abdominal teeth away, stabbing at the youth with sharpened flesh spikes. Mistletoe bit down on that arm, trying to give Eggplant the leverage he needed to get his teeth on the green imposter. Romaine twisted, seizing Mistletoe by her suit and yanking.

“If you are hungry, eat this!” Romaine hissed.

Eggplant freed his helmet and lunged, biting down. Red blood sprayed everywhere. Romaine cackled, scrambling free of the pair. It took Eggplant a moment to realize what he had bitten.

Mistletoe lay limp between his teeth, nearly bitten in two.

Romaine continued to laugh, clutching his gut. “Wondered if you would! Hah hah!”

Holly, confused and enraged, flung herself at Eggplant. She beat at him with her fists and bit at his shoulders and helmet. Eggplant dropped her sister, slack jawed and in shock. Holly dove down on her sister, shaking her and shrieking.

“Eggplant! Holly! We have to go!” Catnip shouted.

That was enough to pull Eggplant from his daze. He seized Holly, ignoring the way she struggled and beat at him. For a moment, Catnip could imagine Holly as just a regular human child throwing a tantrum. Eggplant crushed the cyan imposter to his chest and dashed for Catnip, pushing her toward the first tunnel he saw.

Catnip shoved away her fears. She crawled into the vent first. Eggplant shoved Holly through next, and then he crawled in after. Romaine’s laughter echoed after them as they fled.

Catnip threw aside the vent cover once they were through, pulling herself into Reactor. The room was empty of imposters, thankfully. She reached in to seize Holly by the arm, dragging her into the open. Eggplant squirmed his way through the narrow exit after them, the metal bending when he finally got out.

Holly screamed, thrashing and fighting. She whipping around, slashing at Catnip with razor sharp claws. Catnip yelped as the arm of her suit tore, the flesh underneath splitting.

Eggplant roared, leaping on Holly to crush her to the ground. Holly screamed more, kicking and punching. Her wild struggles soon died and she curled on the floor, shaking.

Catnip stumbled away, clutching her arm. She was bleeding. Her suit was damaged. Its internal systems already closed, isolating the damage and any oxygen loss to between her elbow and wrist. She was safe.

Eggplant soon rose, crawling toward Catnip. He whimpered when he saw the gashes along her arm.

“I’ll be fine. We’ll go to Medical. They’ll have supplies and food,” Catnip reassured him. “You did good, Eggplant.”

Eggplant whimpered, as if protesting her words.

“It wasn’t your fault. You didn’t know Romaine forced Mistletoe between your teeth,” Catnip said gently. “I know you wouldn’t have bitten if you knew she was there.”

Eggplant lowered his helmet. He was shaking.

Holly’s tiny squeak brought attention to her. She slowly crawled over to them on all fours. There was blood on her suit from her wild attack on Eggplant. The two imposters whimpered and whined before snuggling with each other. Then Holly slunk to Catnip, helmet nudging the woman’s arm.

“It’s not your fault. I should’ve stayed away. It’s okay, Holly,” Catnip said.

They stayed there in Reactor for a while, just recovering. Catnip was hyper-aware of the vent in the corner. Romaine could pop out at any time, if he wanted to. He had to know where they’d gone.

Romaine didn’t appear.

Catnip sighed, getting up after half an hour. Her arm ached but the blood flow seemed to have slowed down. “We need to go to Medical, guys. We need food and medical supplies. Iceberg might be there.”

Eggplant hissed, getting up. Holly rose as well, puffing up. They both remembered him.

“Let’s go,” Catnip said, heading for Reactor’s exit.

The group left Reactor, two members short of when they had left the cells almost an hour earlier.


	21. Present 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Iceberg always knows more than he lets on, but sometimes there are things even he can't explain to himself...

Catnip pretty much expected Iceberg to be there. And he was. The cyan imposter was seated on one of the beds. His visor cracked toothily as she entered Medical.

“I knew you’d be back,” he purred.

Eggplant snarled, charging in. He stopped short, the scuffle with Romaine fresh in his memory. The loss of Daffodil and Mistletoe had taught him to be cautious of these older imposters. Racing in wildly and biting wasn’t going to let him win.

Holly slunk after them, huddling close to Catnip. She seemed quieter and less prone to wander now that her twin was gone.

Catnip kept her injured arm behind her, glove squeezing at it. Hoping to mask the scent somehow. “We’re just after medical supplies and food. Romaine was waiting in the vents, but you knew that already.”

“I did not,” Iceberg denied smoothly. “You may think we are allies now since we both attacked Mint, but we are not.”

“Whatever. Just keep your distance,” Catnip suggested coldly.

Iceberg stayed on the bed, helmet following as the trio moved past him to the cabinets in the back. Eggplant seemed to catch onto Catnip’s attempt at discretion, using his big body as a shield so Iceberg couldn’t see her. The cyan imposter growled but did not move from his spot.

“Yes!” Catnip hissed, finding bandages and antiseptic. She cleaned and wrapped her arm quickly, praying that little of her scent leaked out. “Now for meat…”

Her gaze slid to the closet nearby. The floor beneath the door was dark with blood. She remembered opening that closet so long ago, expecting lifesaving equipment, but only finding the broken body of Iceberg in there. The door was open a crack, letting her faintly see a cyan spacesuit.

“I’m taking some of Iceberg with me,” Catnip said, moving to the closet.

He was still in there, partially eaten. Iceberg had laid claim to the body and no other imposters had ever contested him for it. If one didn’t look below the neck, they’d think the poor medic was intact. His gut had been opened, flesh peeled back precisely to expose meaty hunks and juicy organs. It gave the imposter his daily choice of what to eat.

Iceberg hadn’t deserved this. He was a kind man, a father of two. If anyone should’ve lived, it was him.

Catnip wished that she had known when he had died. She only knew that it had been early on. The imposter had led them on for a long time before she finally opened this closet and found out his secret.

She pulled out the knife that Iceberg had given her, carefully cutting away at the corpse’s thigh. She didn’t want to take too much, just enough to hopefully cure Captain Mint of his rot. It felt wrong to do this to her crewmate but she had no choice. She hoped that he could forgive her.

This was survival and survival didn’t care if you had a choice.

“Where is the other one?”

Catnip jumped, startled. She had briefly forgotten that the imposter was there. Eggplant growled at him but that didn’t stop Iceberg from standing up.

“I said, where is the other one? Weren’t there two?” he asked.

It took Catnip a moment to figure out what he meant. He was looking right at Holly.

“In the vents. Romaine tricked Eggplant into biting her in half. I think she’s dead,” Catnip replied. “Why do you care?”

Iceberg continued staring. “Romaine?”

“Yeah. Again, why do you care? You never cared about your minis,” Catnip said, bagging up the hunks of thigh meat. “There, I think I have enough. We’re going.”

Eggplant seemed relieved to leave. He bared multiple sets of toothy jaws at Iceberg. Catnip closed the closet and swiftly circled around Iceberg to the exit, Eggplant staying between them with each step. Holly huddled at Catnip’s back, nearly stepping on her heels in a bid to not be left behind.

“Goodbye, Iceberg. Hopefully I won’t need to come back here again,” Catnip said.

Iceberg watched the trio leave. Then his gaze turned to the vent near where he’d stowed the medic’s body. Something hot burned in him. It was making it difficult to focus on his next move.

He had smelled human blood on Catnip. She did not need more medical supplies, so she must’ve been hurt. He could use this against her now, if he wanted to.

But all of that was being buried by the sudden knowledge that Romaine had attacked one of his minis. He didn’t know why this bothered him so much. He had eaten his minis before. They were pesky things that grew from his skin too often.

But those two. Why did those two in particular affect him? They were no different than the rest of the minis that he had budded in the past few weeks.

Iceberg moved to the vents, kicking aside the vent cover.

He would go in and investigate. Maybe seeing the body would give him the answers that he sought. Or maybe he’d look for Romaine. One way or another, the cyan imposter was going to figure this out.

Iceberg ducked into the vent tunnel. He would not emerge for a very long time.


	22. Present 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A cure is administered. A choice is made. Will either be correct?

The trip back to the cells was mostly uneventful. There were a few other imposters lurking around, but most of them were easily driven off by Eggplant. It was like they could smell his anger because they scattered quickly.

There were more imposter corpses in the halls now. Their cannibalism was advancing faster.

Catnip hesitated at the stairs. It had been days. She should check with Polus, see if they had made any progress on their guns.

She went downstairs into the cells. She’d check the radio later. She needed to cure Captain Mint first.

He was where she had left him. The minis—most of them adults now—swarmed her as she arrived, growling and chirping happily. The noise died down when Daffodil and Mistletoe’s absences were noticed. Catnip pushed through them, entering Skullcap’s cell. Eggplant could explain what happened.

The captain looked worse off than before. Puddles of black ooze painted the floor and his dark green suit. His breath wheezed and gurgled. He didn’t even seem aware of her.

“Mint, I’m back,” Catnip said loudly, crouching by him. “I’ve got it. This should help.”

“You lived?” the captain croaked.

“Yeah,” Catnip said curtly, unzipping the bag. “Open up.”

Captain Mint’s dark green chest split, sharp teeth parting. She dropped in piece after piece of her crewmate’s flesh, pausing between to let him swallow. He heaved and growled, hands twitching at the taste. Catnip kept an eye on them, in case he was stupid enough to make a grab for her.

Once the bag was empty, she tucked it away. She didn’t need Eggplant eating it.

“Let’s get you up. I don’t want you to choke,” Catnip said, hauling him toward the wall by the elbow.

Captain Mint didn’t fight her, but he did use his boots to help push himself along. He sighed as his back touched the wall, relaxing. “Thank you,” he muttered tiredly.

“Keep me updated on how you feel. If this doesn’t work, I don’t have any other ideas,” Catnip said, stepping away.

His helmet bobbed tiredly. “I will.”

The imposters whimpered as she exited the cell. Holly was swarmed by the rest, as if comforting her.

Catnip wondered if any of them blamed her for the losses. If they did, they weren’t trying to attack her over it.

Catnip headed for an empty cell and settled in. She was tired and needed sleep. Eggplant joined her soon after, snuggling close. She didn’t push him away. She just let herself sleep.

She was woken hours later by loud cries and chatter. Eggplant was at the cell door, staring. Catnip rose to join him.

“What’s wrong? Is everything okay?” she asked.

Eggplant pointed. He was shaking. Catnip followed his finger until her eyes landed on someone. Her knees instantly quaked.

Mistletoe was there at the exit stairs, side torn open but otherwise okay. Her twin clung to her, wailing. But it wasn’t them that had everyone else’s attention.

Iceberg stood behind the twins, a red splash painting his visor and a ram horn held in one hand.


	23. Past 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The crew head into the cells to find Skullcap. Skullcap didn't have a fun imprisonment...

The lights kept flickering as the three crewmates walked. They held hands, Iceberg in the middle. Wheat and Catnip both had their guns out, praying that they wouldn’t need them. The sound of distant gunfire echoed through the ship.

How long was Captain Mint going to chase Romaine for? How long would Romaine keep running?

Catnip didn’t want to think of the scenario that she had crafted. Of Mint being an imposter, playing them for fools by chasing his ally around. She wanted to imagine that he was genuinely protecting them, like he had promised to.

But was it even him that made that promise? Or an imposter just playing games with their heads?

Poor Wheat. She didn’t deserve this. If he was an imposter, how long had he strung her along for?

“The cell stairs should be up ahead,” Iceberg whispered.

“Are we sure that there’s only one or two of these things?” Wheat asked, looking toward every shadow like it would grab her.

“Honestly? No, we aren’t sure,” Catnip replied. “I see the stairs. Keep close, guys. We’re nearly there.”

The doorway was empty and unlocked, thankfully. Catnip pushed it open and headed down first, elbow hooked around Iceberg’s. They shuffled awkwardly down the stairs, one step at a time.

It was quiet in the cells. That couldn’t be good.

“Skullcap? It’s me, Catnip!” Catnip called. “Are you in here?”

Silence.

“Skullcap! Answer if you’re here! It’s urgent!” Iceberg cried.

Silence again.

“What if he’s not here?” Wheat whispered.

“Then we know who to blame,” Catnip replied.

They reached the bottom of the stairs. The lights flickered overhead. The floor was cold. The whole room was cold. The cell level wasn’t built with heat in mind. Catnip was grateful for their suits’ inbuilt heating system.

“Skullcap?” Catnip called, using Iceberg’s penlight to scan the dark.

“That cell, third from the left,” Iceberg said, pointing to it. “That’s where we put him.”

“Skullcap?” Catnip asked, stepping in front of the cell.

There was blood on the floor. That was what the penlight fell on first. The thin beam of light snaked further into the cell, showing more blood and scraps of dark blue material. Catnip bit her lip. Skullcap’s suit was dark blue. The light kept moving until it fell upon its target.

Wheat threw herself to the side, ripping her helmet off to gag. Iceberg was frozen where he stood. Catnip lunged for the cell door, tearing it open and racing inside.

“Skullcap! What happened? Skullcap?” she demanded.

Skullcap wheezed, opening his eyes. He was pale, brown hair mussed. Blood painted his chin and neck, disappearing into the neckline of his suit. His helmet was crushed in a corner.

“Cat…nip?” he croaked. “Y… You’re here…”

Catnip crouched by him. She didn’t dare touch him for fear of aggravating his wounds. “Hold on. We’ll find a first aid kit and some tourniquets. You’ll be okay!”

“Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god!” Wheat whispered, choking back sobs. “I… No, he couldn’t. Catnip, this wasn’t…”

“What happened? Who did this to you?” Iceberg asked, forcing himself into the cell. “Gods, how are you still alive, Skullcap?”

Skullcap chuckled, his smile crooked. “Mint didn’t…want me dead yet… He wanted…fifth and sixth courses…”

“Wheat, we need a first aid kit,” Catnip said firmly.

“He didn’t. He wouldn’t. Not my Mint!”

“Wheat!”

Wheat jolted, helmet snapping up. Catnip was glaring at her, shoulders heaving.

“We need a first aid kit or Skullcap is going to bleed out!” Catnip shouted.

“Both of you, go find one,” Iceberg said, pulling a knife from his belt. “Hurry! I don’t want to be here long. They might come here once they smell blood.” He turned to Skullcap. “Tell me if you feel anything. We might just need to amputate the rest if not.”

“Go ahead…” Skullcap muttered, closing his eyes. “I mean…I still got an arm…and a leg... Worst that can…happen is he…comes back…and eats those too…right?”

“Don’t talk like that,” Iceberg ordered, pressing his knife to Skullcap’s ruined knee. “I’m going to cut now. Try not to scream.”

Wheat choked as Catnip seized her by the arm, dragging her friend up the steps. Neither of them wanted to watch their medic perform two emergency amputations on their crewmate’s bitten off limbs.


	24. Past 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Arguments are had from both factions...

“It really was Mint,” Wheat croaked, hugging herself.

“I’m sorry. I know that this is a big deal, but we can’t do this now,” Catnip said harshly, dragging Wheat along. “We need a first aid kit, maybe multiple.”

Wheat sniffed, lifting her visor to rub at her eyes. “How long? How long was he not Mint?”

“I don’t know,” Catnip said. “Wheat, first aid kit. Focus!”

“My fiancé isn’t my fiancé anymore!” Wheat shouted, tearing her arm away from Catnip. “You want me to just ignore that?”

“I want you to deal with it later! Skullcap needs us now!” Catnip insisted.

“Skullcap killed Ivy! Our friend!” Wheat yelled.

“And who knows how many Mint has killed!” Catnip countered.

The girls glared at each other. Wheat’s fists shook. Catnip wanted to scream.

Gunshots sounded in the distance.

“Wheat, Mint is screwing with us right now. We both know he is,” Catnip said. “I don’t like Skullcap either, but I’ll pick him over an imposter. Romaine tried to kill me. Mint will do the same to you.”

“What if Skullcap is lying?”

“He’s dying right now. Why would he lie?” Catnip asked.

“I don’t know, but what if he is?” Wheat demanded.

“So we should let him die, hope he was lying, and not pitch a fit if Mint is an imposter? What then?” Catnip asked. “What if you’re wrong?”

“I don’t know!” Wheat choked, shaking.

Catnip knew that she should comfort her friend. Give her a hug, a pat on the back, an apology. But her temper was still hot and she didn’t trust herself not to slap Wheat if they touched. Catnip turned away, forcing herself to breathe.

“Liar or not, I’m going to help Skullcap. Ivy would want that,” she said coldly.

Catnip walked away, footsteps heavy on the flooring. After a moment, Wheat’s steps echoed after hers. A piece of Catnip was relieved at this, but a bitter part of her had almost wanted Wheat to go the other way.

She knew that it wasn’t Wheat’s fault. Her crewmate wasn’t thinking rationally. Mint was her love, the man of her life, someone she had been about to marry and have a future with. To discover that man had been replaced by an alien entity that ate humans, it was shocking. It was hard to accept.

It made Catnip think hard about her and Romaine. She hadn’t been effected nearly this badly, even though they had been best friends. Or had she been? Wheat was reacting with misery. Catnip was shutting everything out and soldiering on. Was that okay? Was that a way to cope?

Catnip wasn’t sure. Maybe she should ask Iceberg when they got back to him.

“We need to hurry. We don’t know where Mint or Romaine are,” Catnip said, checking the rooms that they passed.

“We can hear the gun going off,” Wheat offered.

“That doesn’t mean that they’re there. It could be a decoy,” Catnip replied. She spotted a red cross in a room. “Found one!”

She darted inside and pulled the first aid kit from the wall, popping it open. One tourniquet. They’d need another for both of Skullcap’s limbs.

“We need one more,” Catnip said, closing the kit and shoving it into her bag.

Wheat suddenly jumped on her. Catnip yelped, twisting to yell at her. Her visor was lifted, gloved fingers crushing her lips together. Catnip got ready to kick her friend when she heard the voices.

“…did they go?”

“They’re here somewhere. Just relax.”

“I’m done relaxing. I nearly had them! Why did you interfere?”

It was Romaine and Captain Mint.

Catnip moved, recognizing the heavy consoles around them as power boxes. They were in Electrical. She and Wheat scurried behind the main power circuits, hidden from view. The two imposters’ shadows crossed the doorway.

“You should have killed Catnip immediately. Because you missed, I couldn’t take the opportunity to deal with Wheat. You messed us both up.”

“I tripped! That can’t be helped, Mint!”

“Then why are you complaining? You act like I shot you.”

“You looked like you wanted to.”

“Enough of this. They can’t be far. There are few places for them to hide in here and I’m getting hungry. If we don’t find them soon, I’ll need to go back downstairs for a snack.”

“Still gnawing away at that one? I thought you killed him already.”

“I’m not as rash as you, tucking bodies into the vents. Who would go into the cells? I can have a meal and a nice chat.”

“You play with your food?”

“Like you didn’t play with Catnip using that arm. Yet another incident that you messed up.”

“Like you’re any better. You could’ve taken down most of the crew by now! Why wait?”

“We’re winning, aren’t we? We have plenty of food and once these last three are dealt with, we can go to the planet. The others should be waiting for us there.”

Their words got quieter as they walked away, bypassing Electrical. They were too busy arguing to check the room.

Catnip didn’t dare to breathe until their footsteps ceased to echo in the halls. Then she gasped, slumping to the ground. Wheat rolled off of her, sobbing.

“He was going to kill me! H-He is an imposter!” Wheat whispered.

“So they were going to kill us both back there,” Catnip muttered, sitting up. “Then once we were gone, taking out Iceberg and killing Skullcap would be easy.”

“What do we do?” Wheat asked, rubbing her eyes.

“We need another first aid kit. Or something to bind a severed limb with, like rope,” Catnip said. “Anything to minimize Skullcap’s bleeding.”

“What about cable?” Wheat asked. “Or wire? There are lots in here.”

“Grab some. It’s worth a shot if we have to book it back downstairs,” Catnip said.

The girls quickly cut away at the wires along the walls. Wheat even pulled a coil of metal cable from a cabinet. Tucking these away in their bags, they quietly exited Electrical and headed back the way they had come.

“Catnip?”

“Yeah, Wheat?”

“I’m sorry.”

Catnip bit her lip. Her throat felt tight. “I’m sorry too.”


	25. Past 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Catnip performs sabotage to delay their end, but a new question comes to light...

“I’m not sure if he’ll make it.”

Those were the words that greeted Wheat and Catnip as they reached Skullcap’s cell.

“Why? Can’t you fix this?” Catnip asked.

Iceberg looked back at Skullcap. The crippled man was unconscious, fresh blood staining the floor beneath his left leg and right arm…or where they had once been. Both limbs were gone, bitten off at the knee and elbow. The medic had freshly amputated just above those areas, painting his cyan suit red.

“Whatever might be in their saliva is causing an intense infection. The flesh is literally rotting. I cut away several inches and the flesh is still affected,” Iceberg replied. “It might just be easier to completely remove the limbs.”

“Then do that!” Wheat exclaimed.

“If I do, we risk further medical issues. Not to mention mobility problems,” Iceberg pointed out. “He’ll be dead weight and a dinner bell.”

“We can’t leave him here,” Catnip insisted, hands fisting. “Mint basically outed himself and Romaine to us upstairs. We overheard them talking. The gun firing is some kind of decoy. They’re looking for us.”

“Then we better move. Sitting still just makes this a waiting game,” Iceberg said. “If we plan any type of amputations, we’ll need to get to Medical. Barricade ourselves in somehow.”

“We can’t hide forever. We have to get rid of those two. Eject them from The Skeld somehow,” Catnip said.

“Mint has the keys to the airlock. We’d have to manually override it with the vote,” Iceberg pointed out.

“They’ll never give us the time to do that,” Wheat said, hugging herself.

“Maybe if someone could distract them, we could vote them up one at a time?” Catnip suggested awkwardly.

“The other would figure out what happened and come after us before we could finish the second vote,” Iceberg said, shaking his head. “We need to get rid of both at once somehow.”

“Could we shove them both into the airlock if we manage a vote?” Wheat asked.

“I don’t know,” Iceberg admitted. “Perhaps we could. We’d have to be fast.”

“It’s worth a try,” Catnip said. “Once we take care of Skullcap, we can initiate a vote and try.”

“What if it doesn’t work?” Wheat asked.

Catnip tapped her visor. “I’ve got an idea. You guys get to Medical. I’ll meet you there later.”

“What are you going to do?” Iceberg asked, alarmed.

“They want to eat humans, right?” Catnip asked, heading for the stairs. “After this, if they want more, Polus would be their best chance for another meal. I’m not letting them get there.”

“Catnip! Be careful,” Wheat wished, shaking.

“Take care of Iceberg and Skullcap. I won’t be gone long,” Catnip said, looking back at the group. “Wheat, you have a gun. Remember that.”

Wheat nodded, shakily pulling the weapon out. “R-right. I have a gun.”

“You have a gun,” Catnip confirmed.

Catnip took the stairs two at a time, pulling her own gun out. She made herself breathe as she left the stairway, slowly moving from hall to hall.

This was risky. Maybe even too risky, but letting these things get to Polus was as good as a death sentence. If there were still imposters down on Polus, it wasn’t many. Captain Mint and Romaine had already killed plenty. They were too dangerous. Letting them reach Polus was asking for a massacre of the colony.

Stopping The Skeld was the only idea she had. That meant getting to the Cockpit and disabling the wheel and thrusters. Once those were gone, The Skeld would be a sitting duck in space.

These imposters had to be able to starve. They had to!

The gunshots kept getting closer as she neared Communications. Catnip peered in the doorway but saw no gun. She dared to step into the room, following the sound to the computer.

A sound clip was being played on loop. A gunshot noise.

Catnip turned it off and bolted from the room. The imposters would know that she had found their decoy and swarm this way to find her. She ran, passing Shields and heading up to the Cockpit. It wasn’t far but if she was fast, she could get out of here just as quickly.

She threw herself under the wheel console, tearing away at the panels there. Her knife sawed through the wires, sparks flying as the lit buttons lost power and died.

“Hurry, hurry, hurry!” she hissed to herself.

The last wire was cut. The wheel was dead. She even twisted it and pressed buttons to check. She could feel the ship beginning to lag in its movement. The thrusters were petering out.

She could double over to Reactor and completely destroy the thrusters if she wanted to, but she decided against it. Even with thrusters, without the wheel, there was no way to direct the ship’s movements. Going to Polus was impossible.

Catnip bolted from the Cockpit, checking every corner as she moved toward the Guns and into Cafeteria. Each room was emptier than the last. It took everything she had not to slam a hand down on the emergency meeting button.

Soon, she told herself. Once Skullcap was well, they’d do it.

The doors to Medical were just as she remembered, bent and torn from their frames. Romaine had done a number to them. There was a cabinet and a bed piled in front of the entrance, but there were enough gaps for her to squeeze through if she tried.

“Iceberg, Wheat! I’m back!” she said.

“Catnip!” Wheat pulled the cabinet out a foot and a half, letting her friend in. “Did you see them? Where are they?”

“I don’t know. I didn’t see anything while I was out,” Catnip replied, helping her shove the cabinet back into place. “This won’t keep them out.”

“It’s all we could think of,” Wheat said weakly.

Catnip spotted Iceberg immediately. The medic was tying the cable as tight as he could around Skullcap’s leg. The other was still unconscious.

“What did you do?” Iceberg asked.

“They won’t get to Polus, even if they kill the rest of us,” Catnip replied.

“How?” Iceberg asked, helmet tilted.

Catnip walked past him. “Don’t worry. I’ll fix it if we can eject those two. It wasn’t too much damage. Just enough.”

“Is Skullcap going to be okay?” Wheat asked.

“I’ve stopped the bleeding, but I fear how long these amputations might take. Our barricade won’t keep the imposters out and neither will the cabinet over the vent. We’ll be drawing too much blood if we do this.”

“How long will he make it if we don’t deal with his injuries any further?” Catnip asked.

“I’m not sure. Probably not long either way,” Iceberg said, looking away. “The damage is too extensive and their saliva… Who knows where else Mint has eaten from on him. His suit is heavily damaged.”

“So he’s going to die,” Catnip said softly.

Iceberg hesitated. “Yes. Yes, he’s going to die.”

“So we’re all that’s left,” Wheat croaked, sinking to the floor. “They killed everyone else and now they’ll get in here and kill us.”

“We still have guns. We can fight,” Catnip insisted. “If we can get them in the airlock, we’ll be okay.”

“If! All of this hinges on if, Catnip!” Wheat argued. “We don’t even know if there are just two!”

“I know we don’t but if we just give up, then they will get us,” Catnip said firmly. Then she paused. “Wait.”

“What now?” Wheat asked, shoulders quaking.

“Iceberg? Are we the only ones left?” Catnip asked.

“Yes, just us three once Skullcap passes. Why?” Iceberg asked, confused.

Catnip turned to him, dread creeping through her. “Where are your kids?”


	26. Present 16

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mistletoe is home, but that might not exactly be a good thing...

“Why are you here?” Catnip demanded, immediately on high alert.

“Proving you wrong,” Iceberg replied idly, shrugging. “You said my mini was dead. I went to check and found it alive.”

“And that?” Catnip asked, indicating the horn that he was holding.

Iceberg tilted his helmet down. He turned the ram horn in his hand. “Romaine was taught a lesson about not touching my belongings.”

“Your belongings?” Catnip barely stopped herself from laughing. “You abandoned Holly and Mistletoe, and who knows how many other minis!”

“Yet they are still mine,” Iceberg reasoned.

“Fine, you returned Mistletoe,” Catnip said coldly. “Now what happens?”

“If I had to guess, you will chase me off and I will leave,” Iceberg said. “Otherwise I can stay.”

“Stay and eat us?” Catnip shot back.

“Always seeing the bad in me. Wasn’t I so good to you before?” Iceberg asked. “To all of you humans? I could’ve killed you all so many times. I even let Skullcap live longer than he would’ve, had Mint kept him.”

“Yet he’s dead anyway because of you,” Catnip hissed.

“Skullcap did that to himself. You can’t blame me for his decisions,” Iceberg countered. He seemed unaffected by her barbed comments. “After all, I let you go. And here we are, both alive and well.”

“What do you want, Iceberg?” Catnip asked, hands fisted.

Iceberg tipped his helmet. “I find myself…curious.”

“About what?” Catnip asked.

“I’m not entirely sure. My minis. You. Mint. This situation,” Iceberg replied. “Perhaps the human that this body once was.”

“Having an existential crisis?” Catnip asked, almost hopeful.

“I’m content with my existence. It’s nothing that extreme,” Iceberg said with a wave of his hand.

“What a pity,” Catnip muttered. “If you don’t want anything, then get lost. Before my minis do chase you off.”

Iceberg hesitated, as if he had more to say. Then he fell lax, taking a step back. “Fine, as you wish. I have more thinking to do. Consider this my good deed of the day, I believe the saying is.”

Catnip was tense as Iceberg turned, walking up the stairs. He paused midway up and spoke again. His position made his voice bounce around the cells. It was menacing to hear.

“Ah, do feed some of that human meat to my injured mini. It’ll get rot otherwise, like Mint has.”

Then he was gone, leaving the cells behind him.

Catnip huffed. “Goes on and on about how he owns you, but he can’t even remember your names. What a joke.”

Holly scurried over to the human, dragging Mistletoe with her. Mistletoe looked like hell, suit skin torn and covered in old blood. She wobbled slightly as she was dragged along.

Catnip pulled out the other bag of meat, opening it. “Come here, Mistletoe. This will help.”

Holly helped Mistletoe sit down by her. The wounded twin shuddered. Her visor cracked apart, much like Iceberg’s did. Catnip picked up a piece of meat.

“Here you g—”

A flash of white hot pain was all Catnip could register. Someone was screaming. It took her a minute to realize that she was the one screaming. Her arm, the one Holly had slashed, was on fire.

Then she saw why.

Mistletoe had avoided the meat in her hand, aiming for her arm. For the bloodied bandage. For the fresher meat sitting only a foot away from her. And Mistletoe had struck true, glassy teeth piercing deep into the injured limb.

Then Mistletoe twisted her helmet and Catnip’s world exploded into white.


	27. Present 17

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Catnip awakens to see that things have changed, for better and worse...

“…ip…atnip… Catnip!”

Catnip groaned, slowly stirring. She felt cold, especially along her arm. She opened her eyes, blinking tiredly.

Captain Mint was hovering over her. She must be lying on the floor. He helped her slowly sit up, steadying hand on her in case she went down.

“What happened?” she muttered, flipping her visor up to rub at her eyes.

“The other blue one attacked you. Iceberg’s mini,” Captain Mint replied.

It took a minute for that to register. “…What?”

“It bit your arm when you tried to heal it,” he explained. “The others got it away from you but you were bleeding heavily. I’m surprised that the rest didn’t attack you. Maybe they wanted to, but that black one was practically rabid about protecting you.”

Catnip turned her gaze to her injured arm. The suit was torn even more, thankfully it was sealed off now as it had been before against oxygen loss. The exposed skin was covered in bandages. She could barely make out a faint pink stain under it all.

“How deep? Who bandaged it?” Catnip asked, trying not to let her voice shake.

“I did,” Captain Mint replied. “I remember watching this body do it before.”

“And you didn’t try to eat me?”

“We have an agreement, remember? You’re useless to me if you’re dead, as am I to you.”

Catnip nodded, biting her tongue. “You said that you thought the minis might attack me.”

“Minis are usually in a hyper-hungry state. Blood and meat attracts them, sating their hunger upon consumption,” Captain Mint said. “As they feed, they grow. The more they eat, the faster they grow. The faster they grow, the better off they are against us. I thought the sudden exposure to your blood and torn flesh would cause them to attack you.”

“But they didn’t.”

“If they wanted to, they didn’t dare,” Captain Mint corrected. “Your guardian seems to intimidate them enough to ward off such a thing. Except for the blue one.”

“Where’s Mistletoe?” Catnip asked, looking around. She recognized Skullcap’s cell. She slowly got to her feet. “And Holly? Are they all okay? What happened? I don’t remember.”

“You blacked out when it tried to take your arm off,” Captain Mint said, guiding her to the cell door. “The pack seemed to panic briefly. The two blue ones fought, as did the black one.”

She could see the minis now. Most of them were huddled together, dozing. Eggplant seemed to zero in on her and quickly ran over. He growled and whined, hands lifted as if to touch her yet he resisted, leaving the limbs just hovering there.

“I’m fine, Eggplant. Thank you,” Catnip said, trying to pick out the cyan twins. “Where’s Holly and Mistletoe?”

Eggplant led her to another cell. Inside were the twins. Mistletoe was huddled in a corner, helmet smeared in crusting blood. Holly sat in the center of the room, just blankly staring at her twin. Mistletoe snarled at her, crushing herself further into the corner.

“What happened to her? Why is she like this?” Catnip asked, concerned.

Captain Mint shrugged. “Maybe Romaine did something. Maybe Iceberg did. Or perhaps nearly dying made her feral enough to turn on you finally. Who knows?”

Catnip wanted to walk into that cell, to gather Mistletoe up and hold her. To try and puzzle out what was wrong. Her heart clenched, knowing that the blood on Mistletoe’s helmet was hers. It was just too dangerous to approach. What if Mistletoe attacked her again?

“What could Iceberg or Romaine have done?” Catnip asked.

The dark green imposter shrugged. “They could’ve fed her something. I don’t know.”

“You don’t know what could do this?” Catnip asked, annoyed.

“I’m an imposter, Catnip. That doesn’t mean that I suddenly know everything about my kind,” Captain Mint responded. “But I do know one thing. I wouldn’t trust that one anymore. She’s tasted you…and I think she liked it.”

Catnip shivered, watching Mistletoe hiss and snarl in her corner. She didn’t seem willing to leave it while Holly was there. Whether it was fear or shame or something else, Catnip couldn’t begin trying to guess.

They left the cell behind, heading back to Skullcap’s cell. It held bad memories but at least it was safe and separate from the others. Eggplant settled at the door, content to watch.

He didn’t seem as concerned about Captain Mint anymore. Mistletoe had replaced him as the main threat to Catnip’s life.

“Are you okay? Did the rot clear up?” Catnip asked.

“It did,” Captain Mint replied, showing off the scarred stump where his arm once was. The flesh had finally sealed and was on its way to healing. “More food should help.”

“Iceberg said that imposter meat does nothing but fill your stomachs. Only human meat nourishes and heals you,” Catnip recalled. “So killing and eating the others only works if we’re not getting hurt much in the process.”

“Correct,” Captain Mint confirmed. “Which will make taking Iceberg or Romaine out directly rather dangerous.”

“We could airlock them. Or use the incinerator,” Catnip suggested.

“They’re both too smart for that unless we’re willing to sacrifice our own to ensure their demise,” Captain Mint stated.

“We have to do something,” Catnip insisted.

“We will. We just have to cull the numbers and keep collecting your minis,” Captain Mint said, taking a seat on the cool floor.

Catnip bit back a cry of frustration. She was already tired of this patience game. Iceberg knew where they were now. Romaine was still relentlessly hunting her down. She had no idea where Polus was at with their guns.

She needed this to end.

“Sit down and breathe. Drink your water,” Captain Mint suggested, relaxing. “Panicking and becoming angry will not fix anything.”

“We have to be able to do this faster,” Catnip muttered.

Captain Mint hummed lightly. He gave her no answer.


	28. Present 18

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Catnip and Captain Mint talk. Secrets are revealed. Imposters find human things confusing...

“Do you think Iceberg and Romaine actually fought?”

Captain Mint shrugged. “It’s possible. They argued over tactics plenty. They conflict more than they agree. I can see them attacking each other, though over a mini seems suspicious. Iceberg has eaten his before.”

“I know. That’s why I’m confused,” Catnip admitted, staring at the ceiling. “Iceberg was showing off that horn. He didn’t have to bring it down to us.”

“He wanted you to see it. He wanted attention directed at him,” Captain Mint guessed. “There is no proof that it is Romaine’s. Plenty of imposters here have those horns. There were no suit scraps on it. He could’ve broken it off of any horned imposter.”

Catnip shivered. She hadn’t thought about that. That sounded like something Iceberg would do. They hadn’t seen Romaine since, so she couldn’t verify whether he was actually missing a horn or not.

“He was confident that I’d run back to him eventually,” Catnip continued.

“He’s cocky like that. He enjoys being needed,” Captain Mint said. “Ignore him. At least his words.”

“His words got me to the meat that fixed your rot.”

“Fine, most of his words. He’ll say whatever he must to get you to do what he wants.”

“He wants me to fix the wires in the wheel too,” Catnip pointed out.

“Who doesn’t? Besides you.”

Catnip sighed, leaning back against the wall. “Were you…?”

“Hmm?”

“Were you the first?” Catnip asked.

“On this ship, yes. Overall, no,” the dark green imposter replied. “I was birthed on that planet of yours.”

“Birthed?” Catnip asked, confused.

“That is what you call it, yes? Not all imposters come from being buds from adult imposters,” Captain Mint replied. “Budded ones have forms because the adults have taken a human form. Before we have that form, we are almost like slime. Slime and teeth with an insatiable hunger.”

“We never saw you like that. Were all three of you like that?” Catnip asked.

“Yes, as were the two on the planet’s surface.”

“So there were two,” Catnip muttered.

That meant, with Cinnamon dead, there was only one imposter on Polus. Unless it was already budding minis. She made a note to tell Polus that when she next contacted them. They deserved to know what they were up against.

“I don’t know how we arrived on that planet,” Captain Mint said. “I just knew that I had to get on the ship before you left. So I did, with the first two. The other two stayed on the planet. Divide and conquer, I believe the saying is.”

Catnip nodded. She didn’t dare speak, not wanting to interrupt him. This was valuable information that he was telling her.

“I knew who the leader was. I knew he had to be mine. I waited for the ship to leave the planet, and then I waited for him to be alone. The yellow one was clingy. Had she not left, I might never have gotten him as early as I did. I didn’t let him scream. I was afraid. There were so many of you and I had to act quickly. I needed to be him as best I could. You all needed him, so I had to be him.”

“Was this before or after Chamomile died?”

“I’m not sure. The kills blended together at the start. I know the one who took Romaine was the one who killed that one,” Captain Mint replied.

“Did you know about Iceberg? His whole game with us?” Catnip asked.

Captain Mint chuckled. “I didn’t understand that at first. I thought he was stupid for a while. Then, as we whittled your friends down, I saw the beauty in what he was doing. He was there among you, watching your terror. Learning your plans. Earning your trust.”

“And then I found the body in the closet.”

“It didn’t matter by then. We would’ve finished you either way.”

“But you didn’t,” Catnip said. “Wheat stabbed you. Skullcap delayed Romaine and Iceberg. I got away.”

“You did,” Captain Mint admitted. “I really should’ve finished eating him.”

They fell into an awkward silence for several minutes.

“Do you miss her? The yellow one. Wheat,” Captain Mint asked.

Catnip sighed. “I do. Every day.”

“Do you regret not being able to save her?”

“Do you regret playing her for a fool? She loved him, that body you took,” Catnip said, glaring at the floor. “You played with her. You taunted her. You knew what you were doing.”

“I honestly didn’t,” Captain Mint said. “Your human concept of love is…foreign. I do not understand it. I could replicate the hugs and touches and words, but the emotion was not there. I’m surprised that didn’t give me away.”

“Love is blind,” Catnip muttered. “She believed you for so long. Even when we had proof, she didn’t want to think of you as an imposter. She had faith in you.”

“Interesting,” Captain Mint muttered.

“Do you regret throwing her in the airlock?”

“No,” Captain Mint replied. “Regret is another of those concepts that I do not understand. You do something…and then you feel bad about it. Why? It is too late to take it back. What is the point of it?”

“I guess that’s a human thing,” Catnip said.

“Humans are complex yet silly,” the captain noted. “Yet you are the only things that give us sustenance and form. Curious. I wonder why this is.”

“So do I,” Catnip admitted.

They sat in silence once more, listening to The Skeld creak and groan around them.


	29. Afterlife 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Let's crank back the clock once more to view our fallen...

“What happened to you, captain?”

“Don’t ask.”

Mint floated there, watching the puddle of slime crunch down on Chamomile’s corpse. The young crewmate floated beside him, lost and confused. That wasn’t surprising. Mint knew the feeling.

“Are we dead?” Chamomile asked, voice barely a squeak.

“Yes, Chamomile,” Mint replied. “We’re dead.”

“What is that thing?” Chamomile asked, horrified.

“I’m guessing this is what an imposter looks like before it impersonates someone,” Mint said. “Funny. The one that got me turned into me. Why isn’t this one doing that to you?”

“Maybe I taste too good?” Chamomile suggested.

“Ha ha,” Mint muttered. It was a bit funny. “Maybe they’re choosing who specifically to impersonate.”

“They can do that?”

“I don’t know, but it would explain why a double of you isn’t walking around,” Mint pointed out.

“Oh. Okay. Yeah.”

Chamomile floated there, wringing his hands. He had died so suddenly. He hadn’t even seen the stupid thing. It had dropped on him from above, bit down on his head before he could even identify what had hit him. Just wet darkness and sharp pains in his skull.

“You died like that? When?”

“Last night, after the speech,” Mint replied. “It got me in the storage room. Ate me whole, apparently. Then it was me.”

“Oh my gosh! Wheat! She’s got to notice, right?” Chamomile yelped.

“I hope so,” Mint said softly.

The puddle of slime withdrew, leaving Chamomile’s bleeding body behind. It dragged itself to the vent, oozing through the slats. The screws were undone, the vent cover easily moved, but the slimy creature didn’t have the strength to lift the metal. Why bother when it could just drip through in semisolid chunks?

“That’s so gross,” Chamomile said, gagging.

Mint looked away. He could already predict what would happen. Chamomile would be found, an emergency meeting would be called, and the remaining imposters would start moving in for their next kills. He had seen at least two slimes, so he could roughly guess that three of these things had boarded his ship.

It had to have been on Polus. The Skeld had been nowhere else and Polus had an incident shortly after they took off. These two events had to be related.

Mint wished that he could tell Wheat. Seeing that imposter near his fiancé, touching her, saying that it loved her, making a mockery of his hard work… It hurt. He was disgusted.

Wheat deserved so much better than this. His whole crew did. They didn’t deserve this.

“What do we do now?” Chamomile asked.

“Follow and watch. That’s all we can do,” Mint replied.

“Captain, why are we still here? Aren’t we supposed to move on to the next world or something? Or go to some kind of afterlife paradise? Or be reborn as, I don’t know, cacti?”

“What?” Mint stared at him. “Hell if I know. But apparently not. We’re stuck here, watching our crewmates die.”

Chamomile hugged himself. “I don’t want to.”

“I don’t either.” Mint pulled the youth into a hug. “At least we’re together.”

Chamomile hugged him back, sniffling. “Yeah.”

Mint tried to ignore the tightness in his chest. If he had been better, smarter, more aware of his surroundings. More cautious! He’d just talked about being careful of imposters and then he went and died to one!

And he dared to call himself a good captain. If he was truly, he’d have survived to protect his crew from this threat.

But that was a fantasy. This was reality. Reality didn’t care about what you wanted.


	30. Past 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Catnip and Iceberg head out to check on the kids...

Iceberg was quiet. Catnip didn’t know why that made her nervous. It was an easy question. Why wasn’t he answering?

“Iceberg?” Wheat said. “Where are they?”

Iceberg wrung his hands. “I… I had hoped that I wouldn’t need to say.”

“Say what?” Catnip asked. Dread crawled down her spine.

“Where are your kids, Iceberg? They must be terrified,” Wheat said. “What if Romaine finds them?”

“He won’t,” Iceberg interrupted. “They’re safe. I have them in the specimen lab downstairs, near our quarters. I didn’t want them wandering around with the imposters loose. The room is locked.”

“Vents?” Catnip asked.

“I have them weighed down. The imposters shouldn’t be able to get in,” Iceberg said firmly.

“We should get them. Mint can get in there!” Wheat pointed out.

“If we keep splitting up, we risk running into those two,” Iceberg argued. “My kids are fine.”

“We should still check,” Catnip insisted. “Besides, the specimen lab also has a weapons closet next door. We can arm ourselves.”

“What about Skullcap?” Iceberg asked.

“I can stay here. You two go and check on the kids. Grab some more guns,” Wheat suggested.

“This is insane. We should stay put,” Iceberg said firmly.

“Staying put won’t help, Iceberg. We either need to arm ourselves for a direct confrontation…or we need to get those two out the airlock as soon as we can, before they find us,” Catnip replied. “Which would you rather do?”

Iceberg shrunk back. Catnip felt regret bite her. The medic was only doing what he thought was right. He was trying to juggle their safety and his children’s safety. She had no idea what that might be like, having kids to watch out for during such a tragedy.

But what if something had happened to them downstairs? She had to look.

“Fine,” Iceberg muttered at last. He straightened up. “But we need to go quickly. The staircase to the lab is in the storage room, near the trash compactor.”

“That’s not far. We can get there and back fast,” Catnip said confidently. “Wheat, you’ll be okay here?”

“I should be. Just please be fast,” Wheat requested, sitting on one of the beds. “I hope Skullcap wakes up soon. We could use him.”

“He’s more likely to…” Iceberg broke off.

Catnip was grateful for that. They didn’t need a reminder that, win or lose against the imposters, Skullcap was going to die. There was no changing that fact now.

“Let’s go,” she said, checking her gun to be sure that it was charged and loaded.

Iceberg headed for the shoddy barricade that they made, pushing aside a bed and cabinet to make an opening. Catnip squeezed through first, checking around. Hearing nothing, she crawled out and tugged Iceberg through. Wheat pushed the heavy furniture back into place with a soft “good luck, guys.”

“Speed is the game. Speed and stealth,” Iceberg muttered, watching the lights flicker ominously above them.

Catnip led the way, hugging the wall as they moved through the corridors past Reactor, then Electrical, and toward Storage. Past all of the crates and boxes, she could see the lit buttons of the trash compactor. A stairwell was illuminated near it.

“Clear,” Catnip hissed.

“Go,” Iceberg hissed back, giving her a push.

Catnip bolted for the stairs. Every thump of her boots against the metal flooring sounded like a bomb going off. She was soaked in a cold sweat, expecting the imposters to come flying out of left field at any moment to kill her. To leave her a bloody corpse like Ivy was.

She grabbed the railing, thundering down the stairs. Iceberg was hot on her heels, hissing for her to move faster. When they hit the bottom, Iceberg reached past her to slap his keycard against the door scanner. The door slid open and they piled in, not daring to relax until the door closed behind them.

Air hissed in and the room was full of fog. Catnip tensed, ready for teeth to erupt from around her. She jumped when Iceberg grabbed her arm.

“It’s just a decontamination corridor. Relax,” the cyan crewmate explained. “This is to keep us from tracking foreign bodies and organisms into my lab. It’s sterilizing us.”

The fog soon cleared and the door in front of them opened. Iceberg stepped through and froze. Catnip walked into him, confused as to why he stopped.

Then she looked over his shoulder and knew why.

The specimen lab was in ruins. Tables and chairs were in shambles. Equipment was broken along the floor. The specimen cages were bent and torn open, leaking all matter of bodily fluids. Blood spattered the walls and floor, even dripping from the overhead light. It reminded Catnip of the room in the vent system where she found her dead crewmates.

“How did they get in? I fortified this place!” Iceberg cried, doubling over. “Oh god…”

“Where were the kids?” Catnip demanded, pushing past him. She pulled open the closets, searching desperately.

“They’re gone,” Iceberg whispered. ‘They came in, they took my kids and animals, and they left. Oh god, when? When did they do it? They were in here this morning before the meeting…”

Nothing. Catnip searched high and low but there was no sign of the medic’s twin daughters. Holly and Mistletoe were gone.

The vent in the corner was torn up, the floor around it peeled back like tinfoil. The imposters had clearly fought hard to get into the room. Catnip crouched by it, finding blood along the edges.

She picked up a small cyan scrap of fabric. A piece of a spacesuit. Her heart clenched at the thought of it belonging to one of the kids.

Iceberg was on the ground now, sobbing. Catnip pocketed the scrap, returning to him. As much as it pained her to, she pulled the weeping medic from the floor.

“We have to go, Iceberg. They’re not here,” she said, hugging him. “I’m sorry.”

“They were here this morning. They were safe. They were supposed to be safe.”

Catnip hugged him tighter, feeling the sharp edges of his suit dig into her shoulder. Then she quickly withdrew from him. They didn’t have time to mourn.

“We have to get to the weapons closet. That’s through that door, right?” Catnip asked, pointing to a door across the room.

“Yes. Yes, it is,” Iceberg croaked. “Y-you go. I need a minute.”

Catnip nodded. She left him there in the specimen room, opening the door. It was clean and untouched, a short hallway opening to the weapons closet. The room was small, neat, and orderly. It had been well maintained by Leek, who had been the one in charge of this place.

Catnip pulled two long rifles from the closet when she hesitated. Dark thoughts crept through her mind. She checked behind her to be sure that the door to the closet was closed.

It was. Good.

She lifted her arm, activating her communicator. “Wheat? Wheat, are you there?”

There was silence for a few seconds. Then Wheat’s voice came over it. Catnip couldn’t help but be relieved.

“I’m here, Catnip. What’s wrong?”

Catnip swallowed. This was dodgy, but there might not be a choice if she was right.

“Wheat, listen to me carefully. If this is the last time you hear from me, you’ll need to know something,” Catnip said. “The specimen lab is a mess. The kids are gone. I found a scrap of cyan at the vent. Listen carefully.”

Catnip explained. Wheat listened.


	31. Past 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everything falls into place and Iceberg makes his move at last...

“Clear,” Catnip said, peeking out over the edge of the stairwell.

“Then go,” Iceberg hissed.

Catnip tensed before bolting out. Captain Mint and Romaine hadn’t been seen once since they left Medical. It was beginning to make Catnip nervous. Where could they have gone?

They circled the crates and headed past Electrical. All was horribly silent. Iceberg was hot on her heels, checking behind them as they moved. The lower engine rumbled, making the pair more anxious. They quickly darted toward Reactor and Cameras, then toward the upper engine.

“Nearly there,” Catnip said.

Catnip’s heart was in her throat when they reached the barricade blocking off Medical. She rapped on the bed frame and hissed.

“Wheat, it’s us! We’re back!” she said.

“Password,” Wheat requested.

“Password?” Iceberg repeated. “We didn’t have a password put in place.”

“Peanut brittle,” Catnip replied.

The bed frame was yanked back. A yellow spacesuit peeked through. Wheat smiled behind her visor.

“Thank god, you’re okay,” she said, waving them both in. She took one of the rifles that Catnip had.

“When did you two engage a password system?” Iceberg asked, confused as he crawled through the gap.

“Don’t worry about it,” Wheat chirped, pushing the bed back into place. “Skullcap is awake, kind of.”

The dark blue crewmate groaned on the bed. “I’m up…”

“That’s good. Any sign of them?” Iceberg asked, brushing off his suit. “We didn’t see them at all out there.”

“No sign here either,” Wheat reported. “Where could they be?”

Catnip headed over to Skullcap, resting the second rifle next to him. “Hey, are you okay?”

“Nnnn. As okay as I can be,” Skullcap mumbled. “You?”

“We’re good for now,” Catnip replied, sitting beside him. “Mint did this, huh?”

“Yeah,” Skullcap replied, pushing up his visor and yawning. “Right from the start. Should’ve known. Wheat okay?”

“I’m right here. I’m fine,” Wheat said, leaning over him.

“I’m sorry. That must hurt, knowing it’s him,” Skullcap muttered. “Played us like fiddles. Ivy… I killed her for nothing…”

“You were paranoid. It happens,” Iceberg said, checking over their barricade.

“Don’t say it like that. Sounds like you don’t care. You didn’t kill anyone that you loved,” Skullcap hissed, coughing. “Guh! Chest hurts…”

“Yes, we know,” Iceberg said curtly.

“Am I dying?” Skullcap asked. “Did he kill me?”

“Not yet,” Catnip insisted.

“Am I going to die?” Skullcap rephrased his question. “Be honest with me.”

Catnip was silent. Wheat shifted awkwardly in place. Iceberg kept his back to them.

“I am, aren’t I?” Skullcap guessed.

Catnip gave a small nod. She pushed the rifle closer to him.

Skullcap cursed softly. “Am I the one making that smell?”

“What smell?” Wheat asked, confused.

“Like death. Lift your visor,” Skullcap said, coughing.

Catnip and Wheat lifted their visors. It suddenly felt like someone had punched Catnip in the nose. The scent was pungent, like rotting flesh. Wheat gagged, lurching away.

“Oh god!” she croaked.

“What is that?” Catnip asked, looking around.

“How did you not smell it? My suit’s filtration must be busted,” Skullcap muttered. “Can’t you smell it, Iceberg?”

Iceberg said nothing. He just kept fiddling with the barricade, shifting bed frames. Fingers digging into the open gaps.

Catnip turned, scanning the room. She dropped her visor, unable to stand the smell. Where was it coming from? If Skullcap hadn’t mentioned anything, she might have never even noticed it. How long as this scent been in the room?

The scanner looked fine. The room looked clean. The cupboards were untouched. The closet was—

Catnip’s train of thought stopped. Just beneath the closet door was a smear of brown, as if someone hadn’t completely cleaned up a spill. Her stomach roiled at the color.

“I’m going to throw up,” Wheat croaked in the corner.

Catnip moved to the closet, grabbing the door handle. She pulled it open.

“My dear Catnip. You really shouldn’t have done that,” Iceberg said, turning to look at her.

Catnip turned her horrified gaze away from the closet contents in time to see their shoddy barricade crumble to the floor. Beyond it stood Romaine and Captain Mint.

“Now look at what you’ve made me do,” Iceberg said, visor cracking apart into far too many teeth. “What a naughty girl.”


	32. Present 19

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Catnip attempts to call Polus, only to contact a very different place entirely. A familiar voice returns...

“Are you going to call them?”

“Call who?” Catnip asked.

Some of the newly matured minis feasted on an imposter not too far from them. Catnip looked at Captain Mint. The crippled imposter was looked toward the hallway connecting Storage to Communications.

“Your planet,” he replied. “You have maintained contact, yes?”

“…Yes, but I broke off before I allied with you,” Catnip replied evasively.

The dark green imposter chuckled. “Hoping they could shoot us from the sky? We saw the gun.”

Catnip frowned.

“But I guess if we have no other alternatives, it would certainly kill those two. It would kill us as well, of course,” Captain Mint said.

“You want me to contact Polus?” Catnip asked, surprised.

“If you do, you do. I can’t exactly control that, since they likely know of the situation up here,” the captain reasoned. “I can assume that you told them that you are alone, so I can’t pose as another survivor. That leaves only you as a contact. Don’t you want to let them know that you are alive?”

Catnip shuffled awkwardly. She really wanted to.

“Go,” he suggested. “I’ll watch the brats.”

Catnip hesitated. Did she dare?

Captain Mint walked away, growling at a few of the new adult imposters. Keeping any from wandering off. For an imposter with one arm, he was still menacing to them. If only he was able to look as imposing to his peers…

Catnip sucked in a breath and headed for Communications. She didn’t know how long it had been since she last used the radio. Last contacted Polus. Days? Weeks? Did they even care that she was still up here? Did they give up on the gun? What if the imposter on the surface had gotten everyone?

No, they had to be fine. Optimism.

The communications hub was exactly the same as usual. Computer screen black, communication lines quiet, and radio untouched. The vent looked and sounded empty. The imposters were dropping like flies thanks to the minis, so the vents were becoming less and less of a concern.

She picked up the receiver. “Polus, this is Catnip here. Respond.”

Silence.

“Polus, this is Catnip from The Skeld here. Do you read me?”

More silence. Had the ship finally drifted so far that Polus was unreachable?

“Polus, please respond.”

Catnip lowered the receiver. Nothing. That wasn’t good. That wasn’t normal. Alfalfa or one of the others always responded.

Maybe the imposter did finally get them.

She hesitated before twisting the channel dial. If they had left Polus’ range, maybe they had entered someone else’s range. Someone that could help.

“Hello, anyone out there? This is human vessel The Skeld, requesting response. We have an SOS, critical situation involving a hostile alien life form on board our ship. Please respond if you can hear me.”

Static. That was something. She twisted the dial a bit more and repeated her message.

Minutes passed and nothing happened. Catnip lowered the receiver. Her heart sank, hope dwindling.

Maybe it really was over now.

“The Skeld, do you copy? This is Mira HQ. Do you copy?”

Catnip froze. That voice. It couldn’t be…

“Skeld, respond! This is Mira HQ. Catnip!”

No. She was dead. That couldn’t be her. It couldn’t…

“Catnip, please respond! This is Mira HQ!”

Catnip choked up, tears burning her eyes. No…

“Catnip, it’s me! Wheat!”


End file.
